My Paper Heart
by Angelight
Summary: There are three things that constitute success: beauty, money, and love. The first is shallow, the second ephemeral, and the last painful. But out of the three, love is the sweetest and the only that can prove life is just one big box of chocolates.
1. Prologue: Out of Place

Disclaimer: Don't own Gundam Wing or Sailor Moon.

Hey again, everybody. This is my experimenting again. ^^; The title, _My Paper Heart_, is an All-American Rejects song that I have never heard. xD; I basically wanted to write a romance that had to do with things I knew. xD; So … other than London/Paris, I have had personal experience with the settings [be it vacationing or … never mind, just vacationing. xD;], kind of the lifestyle, and definitely the age group. Basically, I wanted to see if it's true that when a person writes about what they know the best, the writing turns out more … genuine…? Is that the word? 

Since I've been recently, dangerously obsessed with Meteor Garden, this was _strongly_ influenced by it. xD Thus, it would probably also seem influenced by Hana Yori Dango [Boys Over Flowers – which I have not seen] because MG is based on that. --; Please forgive me for my cheating. xD; 

Further, the plot will twist … and thus the fic is extremely long. Approximately 44 chapters of this length. --; It is primarily romantic and light-hearted … but, like I said before, certain things require angst. :3 Also, the love formations are strange … but never is more than two people in love with one person – and even that doesn't last for long … simply because I don't truly believe I can write love circles realistically. xD; 

So … yes. Please give me feedback! 3 I am very nervous about this idea … but still can't help loving it because, at the moment, it's my baby. xD; 

Happy reading. :D

_"The entire essence of __America__ is the hope to first make money -- then make money with money -- then make lots of money with lots of money."   
_-Paul Erdman

**Prologue: Out of Place**

_"I love you."_

That was the last thing he had ever said to her. She frowned to herself and sighed quietly before closing her locker and trudging to her first period class. 

Usagi paused in the doorway and glanced around apprehensively into the room. She felt like a five-year-old staring up at the nighttime sky; the classroom seemed to engulf her. The people seemed overly loud, beautiful, stylish. Foreign. 

Squaring her shoulders, she strode in and picked a front seat on random, glancing around quickly once and then eyeing the clock, counting the hours until school ended.

The first day of school – always a joy. There were one hundred and eighty days left, approximately. How long would she be able to stay? Before she transferred again to another equally flashy, high-ranking private school paid for by a person who she hadn't seen in six years? 

_"I love you, Usagi. That is why I'm doing this."_

That was why she was more than five thousand miles away from him. That was why, though he called himself her dad, he chose to step aside and let her live alone. 

_"I love your mother more than anything."_

The mother that he never married. The mother who ran off after a one thousand dollar one night stand and nine months of purgatory. 

_"So from now on, Usagi, I will only be your father at heart. And from now on, you will drop the name Hino and become Usagi Tsukino."_

The bell rang, a series of chimes specifically designed for St. Gabriel's. 

A tall and primly dressed woman walked to the front, scowling as she scanned the room. "Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to start by reminding you that you are now enrolled in the highest level of the nationally prestigious St. Gabriel's. Thus, you must all brace yourselves for a strenuous year. This year, there will be no coddling so keep this in mind: no matter how much your bank accounts are overflowing or how powerful your parents are, there will be no bending of the ru-"

The door banged open and the most beautiful girl Usagi had ever seen strode in, followed by a short, scurrying man, carrying her books. 

The teacher pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. "Young lady, you are officially late."

The girl looked up, ebony eyes piercing and stark against perfectly pale skin, and flicked her waist length hair over her shoulder, creating a cascade of silky darkness. "Excuse me, _miss_, but do you know who I am?" Her tone arched arrogantly and her eyes narrowed in cold amusement. 

"It doesn't matter who-"

"I just got off a flight from Paris an hour ago and rushed here to the best of my ability." She paused and licked her lips. "I think, since my family does own this school, I should have _some_ right to break the rules every once in awhile."

The teacher's superior expression slid off her face, and she tittered nervously. Usagi felt like rolling her eyes. Another hypocrite to add to her growing list.

Silently and deliberately, the girl turned around, took her books from the short man behind her, and indicated for him to go away. "Now, _miss_, if you would please introduce me to the class? After all, it _is_ what we're paying you to do." 

The entire class was alert and listening, and the girl was smiling as she turned to face them. 

Clearing her throat nervously, the professor managed a smile and announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, this is none other than the sole heiress to one of the world's largest business fortunes, also, coincidentally and very fortunately," she raised her eyebrows briefly, obviously worlds away from being pleased, "the daughter of this school's founder. Please put your hands together for Miss Rei Hino and hel-"

"Hino?!" Usagi jumped up and slammed her hands on the table. The brief applause faded to a small smattering and then silence as twenty something people turned to stare at her. Usagi thought she heard giggling. 

She forced a smile and hesitantly sat back down, staring at the surface of her desk, afraid to raise her eyes, and blushing fiercely.

"Miss Tsukino? Is there something you have to say?"

Usagi glanced up and smiled nervously. "No, no … I was just surprised. That's all." Rei's dark eyes were focused completely on her. She looked down again, quickly.

"Well then, Miss Hino, feel free to sit wherever you want."

Usagi heard footsteps but didn't look up, trying to shield her face with her blonde streamers of hair flowing from round "meatballs." 

When the teacher didn't resume her lecture, she looked up and almost had a heart attack. Rei Hino was standing in front of the desk next to hers, staring coolly at the guy sitting there.

"Get out," she ordered quietly. 

Nodding quickly, the guy gathered his things and moved to another seat. Usagi gulped and looked away. 

"As I was saying … this year will be much more difficult than all of your previous years. Therefore, you must all work hard and put effort into your classes in order to even hope to graduate from St. Gabriel's." 

_Or you could be Rei Hino and own the school,_ Usagi thought sarcastically to herself. 

"Or you could be me and own the school." Usagi jumped and looked up at the girl beside her; their eyes locked. "Admit it. You were thinking that." 

She swallowed and bit her lip. Up close, Rei Hino was even more strikingly beautiful, her dark, dark eyes, lashes, and perfectly straight hair contrasting sharply with her pale, unblemished skin. "I…I…"

"What's your name?" 

Her eyes briefly darted to the front of the classroom, eyeing the still lecturing teacher.

Rei waved a dismissive hand. "Don't worry about that. It's nothing important."

"Usagi Tsukino."

The dark-haired girl smiled. "Usagi Tsukino. I think I like you." Her smiled widened, the first true grin she had offered ever since she stormed into the classroom. Rei leaned toward her. "I'm holding a reunion with some of my friends this evening at seven. Would you come too?"

Usagi's eyes widened and she hastily shook her head. "I have to work today. I have to go right after school."

Rei frowned faintly. "For fun?"

"No, for money," Usagi laughed weakly.

Rei was still frowning. "Was that a joke?"

The smile melted off her face. "You were serious?" She smiled apologetically. "I need it to help pay for food and things like that."

Rei sighed disappointedly and turned back toward the front. Usagi was just about to thank her luck and quick thinking but…

"I have an idea." Rei beamed at her. "How much does your job pay you per hour?"

"Fifteen dollars?"

Rei nodded resolutely. "For every hour that you spend at my house, I will pay you one hundred dollars. Plus, I'll add a one thousand dollar bonus if you stay and eat dinner. What do you say?"

Usagi gaped at Rei's triumphant smile. She blinked quickly and shook her head, jarring the temptations out of her mind. "No, no, I could never accept that amount of money."

"It's nothing. Just come and have fun." She tore a sheet of paper from her binder and scribbled onto it quickly. "Look, here's my address. If you have trouble finding it, I also wrote my cell number. I won't accept a no." 

Biting her lip, Usagi stuffed the slip into her purse and sighed. The worst case scenario had become reality.

………………….

_Thanks, Rei,_ she thought to herself bitterly as she hailed a taxi and handed the driver the address Rei had written for her.

He raised his eyebrows and stared at her in the rearview mirror. "The Hino Palace? You friends with them?"

She made a face. "Not _per se_." 

He shrugged and reset the meter. "As long as you can pay me, I don't care."

Usagi shot him a withering look. "Just mind your own business."

…………………

It was ten past seven just as she bypassed the security gates and ran up monumental steps to the main entrance, thankful that she had decided to be practical and wear tennis shoes. 

The door opened just as she ran up to it and a formally-dressed man bowed to her stiffly. "Miss Usagi Tsukino. Please, follow me."

She paused to gawk at the house, arching her neck to see the ceiling and eyeing the sweeping staircase that reminded her strongly of Cinderella and other fairy tales that only held places in nostalgia. 

"Miss Usagi, Miss Rei is in this room." The man bowed again and pushed open the door, holding it for her. She stepped in tentatively and glanced behind her quickly when the man left and closed the door behind her. Usagi thinned her lips. She had never felt so trapped. 

"Usagi! For a moment, I thought you wouldn't be able to make it." Rei got up and rushed to her, hugging her briefly and leading her to the table. She glanced around; the room looked something like a dining room. Except maybe five times larger. An intricate chandelier dangled from a high, high ceiling, right over a mile long dining table of glass. 

"Usagi, this is Trowa Barton and Hiiro Yui. Do you know them?"

She smiled at them and waved gingerly. They nodded at her from their sitting positions. "Know _of_ them." 

Rei grinned. "I'm not surprised." Her hair, on one side, was pulled back by parallel, undoubtedly diamond, berets and her arms were bare. Usagi guessed the tank top Rei was wearing to be at least ten times the price she personally would ever pay. 

"I had wanted for Duo to come too but he couldn't make it."

At the name "Duo", Usagi saw a brief scowl flash across Hiiro's face. 

Usagi took a deep breath and sat down. "I really can't stay for long. My mother needs me home to help her." That was an outright lie; her mother was probably halfway around the world and had forgotten she ever had a daughter a long time ago. 

"Oh," Rei sighed dejectedly. 

Trowa shifted and glanced at Usagi before looking at Rei. "So, Rei, how was Paris?"

The dark-haired girl started and laughed. "It was romantic … as ritzy as they say. But … the streets were narrow … and nine months was way too long to spend there. It's nothing like LA." 

Hiiro raised an eyebrow and stirred his coffee lazily. "Romantic? Any reason why?" There was no inflection in his voice but it was latent with the faintest hint of amusement.

Rei rolled her eyes. "Don't tease me, Hiiro. Paris … just has a completely different atmosphere from LA." 

Usagi eyed her and then looked away, staring uncertainly at the coffee Rei had placed in front of her and briefly sipping it. Making a face, she quickly reached for the sugar. 

She had never felt so out of place.

…………………

"Is the relationship between you and Duo still as bad as it was before I left?" 

Hiiro glowered at his coffee. "As long as he is here, it'll stay that bad."

There was an uneasy silence and Rei looked like she wanted to take her question back. Usagi glanced around inquisitively. There was obviously something she didn't know.

A hour had passed since she arrived during which Rei talked about her nine month long schooling in Paris, Hiiro and Trowa talked about the events at St. Gabriel's, and Usagi pretended to be completely immersed in her coffee and unable to speak. 

Trowa cleared his throat. "So, Usagi, tell us about yourself."

She started and stared, wide-eyed, at him, the desire to strangle him welling up inside of her. "Well I…" She smiled shakily at all the eyes focused on her. "I don't live in Beverly Hills. I'm not even 1/100 as rich as any of you. I just transferred to St. Gabriel's from San Romana in San Diego. And I haven't seen my father in six years." 

Rei raised an eyebrow. "Divorce?"

Usagi thought quickly. "No, he died in a car accident." 

The obligatory silence for mourning passed and Usagi stood up. "I should really get going now. Thank you for inviting me, Rei, and it was great meeting you, Trowa, Hiiro." She forced a smile and started heading for the door.

"No, Usagi, wait!"

She turned around briefly and gazed curiously at Rei. 

"It's raining outside. Hiiro can drive you home." 

Usagi almost laughed when Hiiro choked on his coffee. "No, it's okay. I can take a cab."

Rei shook her head fiercely. "No. Hiiro?" 

He glared up at her. Ten seconds passed before he looked away, sighed, and grabbed his car keys off the table, standing up. 

Arctic blue eyes turned to meet hers. Usagi gulped and felt like running. "To please Her Majesty Rei," he said sarcastically. 

…………………

Usagi hesitated and glanced furtively up at Hiiro as he opened the umbrella and headed out toward his car parked in front of the entrance. 

_Ferrari, go figure,_ she sighed to herself. 

"Well?" 

Usagi jumped.

Hiiro was already in the rain, the umbrella held above him, while she remained two feet behind him, still in the shelter of the porch. 

"I don't need an umbrella and I don't need you to drive me home." 

Hiiro looked like he wanted to roll his eyes but settled for running a hand through his dark hair that looked almost black in the night. "Can we just go already?"

She stared at him obstinately. 

Sighing loudly, he strode back to the porch and pulled her to him, ignoring her indignant yelps and protests. 

"Let go of me right now! I'll-" She struggled but he held her tightly to his side. 

"Look, _Miss Usagi_, what's worse? Getting wet or standing next to me?" He was glaring at her with such vehemence that Usagi thought she was going to shrivel under his gaze. Scowling, she glared back at him, still pressed to his side and under the umbrella. 

"Do you really want to know?"

He looked vaguely unsettled. "Just … just get in the car."

She laughed derisively but obliged.

…………………

"What're you planning, Rei?" Trowa smiled faintly at her contemplative expression. 

She laughed shortly. "I was just thinking … Hiiro needs a girlfriend." 

Trowa arched an eyebrow. "And you chose that girl?"

"She's not just _that girl_, Trowa. She's unique. She's not addicted to money." Rei frowned faintly. 

Trowa chuckled. "If that is one hundred percent true, Hiiro will have competition."

Rei bit her lip. "Like?"

"Like Duo, like me, like every other guy at St. Gabriel's who has never met a girl who didn't dream about Swiss bank accounts and Chanel perfume."

Rei was silent.

"But what Hiiro does is up to Hiiro, and I am speaking hypothetically," he paused to smile at her, "After all, Usagi Tsukino is certainly not the prettiest girl in the world. Tell me more about your trip."

Rei sighed and leaned forward in her seat. "Well, French Literature was probably the best class on my schedule…"

Trowa smiled and nodded, Rei's words fading into oblivion as she continued talking. All he could think about was how admirable she had been ever since they were kids, and how gorgeous she looked at this perfect moment under the chandelier's light. 

…………………

I don't like it much … heh heh … especially the middle. Because I have a hard time writing Usagi in such a submissive role … but I wanted to get a point across. xD;; So urm … no complete clarification of the relationship between Usagi, mom, and dad … unless you're very good with subtle details. xD; Just introduction of characters … meeting of characters … some characterization. We'll hear more about/from Duo later on … and learn more about Rei's past … because it's important. xD; Pleaseplease comment! I'm desperate for your opinions. ;-; Lol … no, really … I have never felt so nervous about an idea. --; But thank you all for reading! :D Yours, Angel. 


	2. The Prince

**Disclaimer:** No own.

_Love is a fire, but whether it will warm your heart or burn your house down, you never know. –Anonymous_

**Chapter 1: The Prince**

Usagi bit back a sigh and stared blankly out the window, the streetlights passing in streaks of white and gold. She sneaked a glance at Hiiro's sullen glare at the road and quickly looked away. It was so silent that she could hear herself breathing, gasping under that solemn layer of ash and dust. 

She frowned and reached over to turn the radio on. It blared out some station she had never heard of. But at least it wasn't silent, and the sound was blowing the ashes away. 

Hiiro glanced at her and then the radio, scowling faintly. With a faint beep, the silence returned. There was again, nothing but the sound of the road passing under Hiiro's flashy, luxury car, nothing but the muted thundering of rain on the windshield. Usagi made a face and openly glared at him. He didn't seem to notice. Defiantly, she turned it back on.

He turned it off.

She turned it on.

"Whose car do you think you're in?" With that, Hiiro turned it off again, slamming onto the button so fiercely that Usagi winced and thought for sure it was going to break. But, she was sure, to people like Hiiro, the cost to replace it would be trivial. 

"You're right. I'm in your car. Well, if you'd kindly pull over and allow me to get off, I'd be more than happy to do so," she snapped back, narrowing her eyes at his impassionate profile. 

Hiiro snorted. "I'll let you get out. But I won't pull over." Usagi's jaw dropped and her mouth moved soundlessly as she glowered up at him. 

He turned to her and raised a haughty eyebrow. "Well?"

Shooting him one last glare, she looked away and out the window.

"I thought so," he muttered smugly. 

More uncomfortable silence passed. 

Usagi cleared her throat. "You know … you're fifteen miles over the speed limit."

Hiiro didn't deign that worthy of an answer. 

"I have no idea what Rei sees in you."

"That's my line!" she protested loudly, blue eyes flashing murderously. 

He barely even glanced at her. "But I suppose it's just one of Rei's _temporary_ obsessions and she'll be over it soon."

Her shoulders were shaking from pent-up anger. "Well, at least Rei _voluntarily_ made friends with me. I bet all of your parents _planned_ your friendships so that in the future, you could marry each other and become even _richer_." Her tone was sharp enough to draw blood. And for a moment, in Hiiro's silence, she thought it had.

Finally, Hiiro smiled tightly and laughed derisively. "I wouldn't be surprised if you were right."

She didn't know what to say to that. The rain raged on. 

"Tell me where to turn." That was the softest and gentlest voice Usagi had ever heard out of him. But she chose not to comment.

"Make a right on the next street and the apartment building is to the left."

She saw the way Hiiro gazed at the buildings, undoubtedly comparing their drab appearance to his life of platinum and Jaguars. He pursed his lips and she didn't know if it was out of disgust or pity. But she knew she didn't want anything to do with either, especially coming from Hiiro Yui. 

He pulled to a stop. Usagi turned to get off but hesitated and, not daring to look back at him, mumbled, "Thank you."

"What was that?" 

His tone was faintly mocking and Usagi seethed but gritted her teeth. "I said … _thank you_," she answered, more loudly this time, and sneaked a glance at him. Hiiro suppressed a smirk. 

"Take this." He reached into the back and handed her the umbrella. 

"I don't need your umbrella," she replied stubbornly and moved to open the door.

He never faltered. "It's not my umbrella; it's Rei's." 

Usagi turned around to face him completely and glared. "I never asked for your help. I didn't need a ride home. When we left, I didn't need an umbrella and I don't need one now either."

Hiiro looked ready to roll his eyes and frowned at her frustratedly. "What's wrong with you? Look, it's either you take the umbrella and go away or I walk you to your door." He stared at her coldly as if promising that if she chose the latter, he would make sure the short walk would be more than unpleasant. 

She looked from the umbrella to him as if trying to figure out the lesser of two evils, and snatched the umbrella from his hand. He leaned back in his seat arrogantly. She opened the door and walked away without another word. 

"Pig," Usagi muttered to herself quietly but stood in the doorway, staring after his headlights in the rain. [1]

…………………

_"You take after your mother, Usagi."_

She stared at herself in the mirror and cocked her head, silently questioning, Shaking her head defeatedly, she exited the bathroom and flipped the lights off. 

How much time had passed? Six years. So much could happen in six years. Even if she were to see him again, what would she say? What would they talk about? Would he still act like her father and she his daughter? Perhaps it was better to leave the memories the way they were. The way they were that night, right after her birthday party, when he came into her room and caught her in a fierce hug.

She could remember it excrutiatingly. She could remember the almost palpable sleepiness after an afternoon of ice cream cake and water balloons. Her tenth birthday. Her first two digit birthday. 

And when he had hugged her, she could remember the erratic rising and falling of his chest, his rapid and ragged gasps for breath. She hadn't understood at first why he was holding back tears but she cried with him nevertheless because his sorrow overwhelmed her. 

"Usagi…Usagi…you are ten years old now. You must learn to take care of yourself. You can't live with me anymore. You have to go and live alone. I … I will help you. I'll rent you a place – nothing too fancy to seem suspicious – and I'll pay for your private school fees. Only the best … so that one day … you can smile and say 'my father loved me.'"

She hadn't quite understood even then. She hadn't realized it was the last time in her life she was ever going to see him and talk to him, that from that moment forward, she would forever just be watching him on T.V. or cutting out his newspaper pictures and that no matter what, they would always be separated by so many things that he held dear to his heart.

Family. His wife, his daughter. 

She had felt betrayed when she finally figured out that he never explained to her that when she waved goodbye to him that time, it was the last. What would she have done? What _should_ she have done? Stalled for time? Clung to him and refuse to let go? Threaten suicide? 

Over time, the more she thought of it, the more convinced she became that her father had lied to her on purpose. And he had done so because he had always and will always love Rei more.

…………………

Usagi tried to slouch in her seat and make herself as small as possible but to no avail. Rei spotted her and strode over, flashing her a dazzling smile. She smiled tentatively back.

"Usagi, you wouldn't mind sitting with us at lunch, will you?"

Her eyes skittered around the room haphazardly. "I…I have homework to do … I didn't finish it last night so…"

Rei was frowning and shaking her head disapprovingly. "You know, you should never skip lunch for anything. It's bad for you."

"Well…"

"What class's homework?"

Usagi thought quickly. "World History."

Rei brightened as Usagi's heart sank. "Both Trowa and Duo are incredibly good in that class. They can help you."

She smiled weakly, returning Rei's grin, and slouched even further.

…………………

It was unnerving how all the picnic tables of St. Gabriel's were impeccably clean, shining as brightly as sterling silver under the harsh sunlight outside. It was also unnerving that the one table Rei, Trowa, Hiiro, and Duo sat at also happened to be in the center of the courtyard and everything that went on between the four was easily visible to all the other tables and students that hung on to every word they said. 

But what was most unnerving was that nobody at that table seemed to care, casually eating their caviar, sipping their foreign wine.

That was an exaggeration. Food could only get so fancy with the bland atmosphere of St. Gabriel's. 

Usagi leaned forward and propped her head up with her arm. There were only four of them so far – Duo was not yet there – and Trowa and Rei were chatting offhandedly, Hiiro looking away to the side as if half bored, half lost in thought. All she could do was eat and try to look inconspicuous. 

Hiiro hadn't even glanced at her and seemed to have tossed the memory of their tension the night before away. She was surprised and relieved that despite his absolute obnoxiousness, Hiiro didn't hold grudges. 

Perhaps.

"Sorry I'm late. I was briefly … detained."

Rei grinned and stood up. "Duo. Why weren't you there to welcome me back?" She laughed and dismissed his stuttered excuse, hugging him briefly, her dark hair falling perfectly over the pale skin of her arms. 

He had stopped panting from jogging over to the table but there were short strands of chestnut hair that had escaped the loose braid and his bangs were falling into his blue-violet eyes. He pushed them back carelessly. 

Trowa raised an eyebrow and smiled faintly. "Detained?" Before Duo could answer, Trowa turned to Usagi and told her conspiratorally, "That means he was attacked in the halls by fangirls."

Usagi blinked and Duo laughed.

"Fangirls? Don't get me confused with Hiiro."

Only then did Usagi turn to look at Hiiro. He was glaring up at Duo with so much hate that all the mirth Duo's arrival had brought vanished in an instant. 

Apparently Duo noticed it too. "Why're you looking at me like that?" he asked quietly, the humor in his voice draining away.

Hiiro was silent briefly. Then, slowly, he replied, "Why shouldn't I be looking at you like this?"

Duo looked faintly annoyed. Rei barely glanced up at the rising friction between the two and resumed her chat with Trowa. Usagi tried to catch her eyes as if begging for an explanation but Rei was careful to ignore her. 

"Earth to Mr. Hiiro. That was a compliment."

Hiiro sat up from his slouched position, his hands gripping the table so tightly that his knuckles bled white. "I don't need compliments from street rats."

Duo's eyes narrowed and he pushed his bangs away from his eyes again, looking to the side briefly as if collecting his thoughts. "I can change whether or not I'm a street rat. You, on the other hand, can never change your personality."

Hiiro fumed silently. Usagi glanced from one person to the next. Rei and Trowa were still chatting as if the whole student population of St. Gabriel's was not watching Hiiro and Duo's every move. She bit her lip nervously.

"In my eyes you'll always be a street rat."

"You're the most disgusting person I've ever met. Even all the criminals and prostitutes I knew are saints compared to you." With one final batting of his hair from his face, Duo stormed off. The uneasy silence of the entire courtyard was only broken by Rei and Trowa's quiet chatting. 

Usagi slammed her hands onto the table and stood up. "Hiiro Yui, I agree with him completely."

He barely glanced at her. The courtyard was still.

She vaguely noticed Trowa subtly shaking his head at her as if warning her against what she was about to do. Usagi dismissed him and squared her shoulders. With one swipe, she grabbed Trowa's open water bottle and dumped it over Hiiro head. It trickled from his hair, down his face, onto his shirt. 

If Hiiro was angry before, he was ready to kill now. Snatching the now empty water bottle from her hand, he threw it across the yard. "What did you do that for?!" With the water still dripping from his face and hair, he looked almost crazed.

Usagi swallowed hard and tried to control her breathing. "You're right," she replied softly, "I shouldn't have done that. I should've used this instead." Rei yelped as Usagi yanked the iced tea from her and proceeded to pour it slowly over Hiiro. She glared at him defiantly as if daring him to do something about it. 

He did.

In one liquid action, his palm made contact with the underside of her wrist and the still half-full cup went flying and landed on a table across the yard, splattering the people, and breaking into dangerous glass slivers. They didn't move to blame Hiiro, simply got up and reached for the napkins. Usagi stared at them, a nervous knot forming at the pit of her stomach. It was painfully clear that in this school, Hiiro was king. 

And with one quick glance at him, she grabbed her bag and ran.

…………………

"You know, I didn't need you to defend me."

Usagi jumped at the sudden voice and looked up to meet a pair of startlingly liquid amethyst eyes. Duo looked up at her from his position on the bench, shrugged, and looked away. 

"I can take care of myself."

Usagi made a face. "Well, you're about as gracias as Hiiro back there."

Duo grinned but didn't answer. "What's your name?"

She sniffed disdainfully and avoided his gaze. "Usagi Tsukino."

He nodded and stood up. She glanced back to see the smile on his face tighten and transform into a glower. "Well, Miss Usagi, in the future, do try to keep your nose out of other people's business."

He turned and walked away without another smile. 

She scowled. "Wait! Who do you think you are?!" 

Duo stopped abruptly, his braid still swinging lightly. There was a long pause as Usagi waited for him to do something. Finally, he turned to face her, this time smiling faintly. "Thank you, Usagi Tsukino."

He waited for her to catch up to him.

"You know, you're look very drab next to Rei," he mused.

Usagi glared at him. "It's not my fault I'm not gorgeous like Rei."

He smiled and nodded approvingly, walking again. "Good answer. Cute."

Usagi frowned to herself and tried to keep up with his long strides. "Who are you exactly?"

"In school," he started, expression amused and turning to face her, "I am the prince while Hiiro is the king."

"And outside of school?"

He grinned. "We're brothers." 

Her jaw dropped.

Duo laughed and brushed a stray strand of hair from her face affectionately. "Don't worry about it, Usagi Tsukino. Duo Maxwell Yui can take care of his own problems."

…………………

It's six pages! Barely … but it's six pages! Aren't you proud of me? :D And the only time I wasn't working on it was for AP exam week and the weekend before…! :D Yes, thank you, I am quite good. xD Kidding. :D I recently started watching Meteor Garden II … can you believe me? xD; But it's not as exhilarating as the first one … typical sequel syndrome. Probably because I was fully behind DMS/SC and wasn't particularly interested in YS. But more so because I'm more interested in the "chase" [the pursuing] than what happens after the chase [the stability]. xD; Does that make sense? Is it just me? xD Um yes. So…! There's nothing I want to say … xD; This plot is up to you guys to figure out … no hint-dropping this time. xD;; Thank you all for reading! Yours, Angel.

Notes:

1. "Pig" – Usagi called Hiiro this a lot in Beth-chan-san's A New Life but in actuality, I got this from Meteor Garden [surprise surprise xD] … Though technically, I suppose you couldn't say it's a Meteor Garden thing … it's probably more like a Taiwanese thing. xD; So … yes. :D

Fanfiction.net was doing strange things when I uploaded this … so the first five or so reviews I got were emailed to me with review alert but didn't show up on the site. O.o;; Lol. But I didn't realize they weren't showing up … and I deleted the emails … so if I didn't reply to your review, I'm terribly, terribly sorry … and thank you nevertheless. :D

**Jenntlefanart****:** Thank you for the tip. :D I couldn't quite understood why until you told me. xD; But um … if it wasn't too obvious, Usagi and Hiiro/Trowa go to the same school so she's heard of them. :D Thank you very much. :D

**Moongirl****:** Thank you! And I hope so. xD;

**SailorKagome**: Thank you veryvery much. O.o;; I'm so flattered. xD;;

**Deathangelchainlink****:** Lol … I think I'm half-over it. xD; Hopefully. But this fic remains influenced by it. ;

**Mavan****:** I think Meteor Garden 1 follows HYD very closely. O.o;; [or so I've heard] But thank you and I'm glad that you agree with me. xD;

**Airlady**: Lol … thank you … and so am I. xD;

**Black Aura-Sama:** Yupyup … more likely than not Trowa/Rei … though … well. Hiiro/Usagi isn't quite so certain actually. xD; Quatre and Wufei and Minako and Hotaru and Ami won't be showing up for a lonnnnnnnnngggg time. xD; But they have very important roles. O.o;; Yes … well. This is going to be quite long. xD; Lol, I am very proud that I can make you stand Hiiro/Usa … even if it isn't that certain yet. xD;

**Lavendardream****:** Lol thank you so much for the solace. :D

**Angelwings6117:** Haha … is Rei really like that in the manga? O.o;; Rei will be complicated in this fic … you'll see … xD; Like for example … she was rude to the teacher … and yet she is darlingly nice to Usagi. :D There will be certain plot elements that seem vaguely like HYD in the future … I think it influenced me quite heavily. xD;;

**Misty H:** Yay! My Europe expert. xD; I probably won't really need information until 10 or so chapters from now. xD; But when I get there, I'll definitely consult you. :D Wow … I want to go to Germany. xD;; But … thank you so much. xD; I can't believe anybody genuinely found the first chapter engaging … ;-; Lol.

**OtAkU****:** Lol … I'm trying not to rely too heavily on Meteor Garden. xD;; Trying, trying. :D The last names … yes … very major conflict. :D I think I intended for Rei to judge Usagi quickly because she grew up in a world where everybody flattered her and would jump at any chance to be around her … and yet Usagi hesitated and tried to hide. Lol … well … that might be a little forced. xD; I'll try to explain it further in later chapters. :D Thanks for pointing that out. ;

**Angelicmayuka****:** Lol … well Hiiro/Usa isn't completely certain right now … I can't stand Rei/Wufei either. xD;; Maybe it's because everybody writes it the same way. --; I'm serious! There are more ways to Wufei's heart than beating him at fighting! And he's not _that_ sexist … I mean … he did grow up in what seemed like traditionalist China … and women are held lower in that society … but not to the point where he'd belittle them _every_ chance he got. xD;; Yes, my ranting. Haha.

**Sunshine Fia:** I don't think anybody is going to find out anything for a lonnnnnngg time. xD; But … I assume bad things will happen once they do. xD; You'll see why. :D How is it confusing? O.o;; Tell me, please! I can never tell whether or not my chapters are confusing … because I understand and know what will happen. xD; Thank you though. :D I wanted to make Rei almost perfect … lol. With her manga beauty. xD;;

**Nerv**** Death (Nerv-2 Member): **For now … it'll be mostly centered around Rei, Usagi, Trowa, Duo, Hiiro simply because I don't want too many conflicts and characters at one time. xD; Haruka and Michiru might show up though. Around the half-way point … Wufei, Minako, Quatre, Hotaru, Ami, Artemis, and possibly others will come into play. xD; So … yes … they'll come … sooner or later. xD;; I think I use most of the characters … o.o;;

**S.Pumpkin****:** You changed your penname. O.o;; Lol … again, I'm flattered that people who don't usually this couple are reading this … ; But again, H/U isn't certain yet … R/T almost is though. O.o;; I'll try my hardest to explain Usagi's behavior … and hopefully she acted a bit more like herself this chapter … but then again … making Usagi act the way she does in the anime … seems a little out of place in this fic. xD;; But I definitely won't change her without explanation. Sooner or later. :D

**: **Urk … fanfiction.net isn't showing your penname. --; Sorry! ; But thank you very much nevertheless. :D

**Sailor Grape:** Lol … would it hurt me to admit that Usagi is a Hino? xD; I don't think so … so … yes, Usagi is a Hino. ; I hope to delve more into what Usagi is thinking … later. xD; And thank you so much! You boost my ego … o.o;; Lol. 

**Datajana****:** Thank you very much. :D I can't honestly say it's original though … because it isn't. xD;; Just not in fic-form yet. Lol. 

**Usagi ****Asia**** Maxwell:** Rei is semi-spoiled. xD;; As for your guess … think … richer. Because there's more involved than just that one night. xD; Lol. That's all I'm saying … not that it's anything to be surprised over … but you'll find out quite soon. ; Usagi is … a Hino. Rei … is a Hino. Lol. The details will be revealed. ; Seeing your name and all the other "veterans" [lol] … attacks me with waves of nostalgia. xD; You haven't posted GW/SM in _ages_. ;-; And so many people are taking breaks/are gone … Gackt-san, Liquid-san … Jemjols-san is gone … somewhere in Japan [xD], tohru-chan-san is probably never going to update again … lol. Ahh!!! I feel so sentimental. xD; But yes … um. Lol. Sorry. xD; 

**Fellow:** Thank you veryvery much. :D

By the way ... fanfiction.net's new quick edit feature ... ohmygoodness ... lol. I like. xD 3


	3. Dark Chocolate

Disclaimer: Nope, no major life-altering moments. Still no own.

I was almost … sort of … vaguely … satisfied with this chapter. :3 Enjoy 3

**Chapter 2: Dark Chocolate**

"What kind of a girl is she?! Acting as if she's timid and shy." Hiiro looked down at his soaked and stained shirt disgustedly.

Rei glanced at him and tossed her hair over her shoulder disdainfully. "Can you say that you didn't deserve it?"

He shot her an ugly look. "Why would I have deserved it? I never did anything to her."

Rei smirked and batted her eyelashes. "Hiiro Yui, you are the most disgusting person I've ever met." She snickered and then burst out laughing.

At Hiiro's annoyed glare, she sighed impatiently and took a deep breath. "Hiiro, you are like the emperor who has, for his entire life, worn new clothes. And Usagi … is the child that finally pointed out to the rest of the crowd that, for his entire life, the emperor was naked."

He snorted. "That's a horrible allusion."

Trowa smiled faintly and raised an eyebrow. "Really? I thought it was quite apt."

Hiiro looked from Rei's smirk to Trowa's careless smile and then back again. Finally, he shook his head and ran a hand through his wet hair, grimacing as his hand came back covered in the light brown of Rei's tea. "Forget it. I'm going home to change."

"Are you coming back, Hiiro?" Rei called after him.

He didn't reply.

"That's probably a no," Trowa offered needlessly.

Rei chuckled. "Thanks for enlightening me."

Heads turned at the rare sound of her clear, delighted laughter.

…………………

The story transformed into a legend at St. Gabriel's.

Hiiro and Duo Yui, though brothers, hated each other's guts.

It didn't matter that they couldn't really be defined as brothers. It didn't matter that Hiiro was one of the richest kids in the US and Duo was nothing more than a street orphan, adopted since age six. All that mattered was the excitement and relish that came with watching the two glare at and snub each other, each trying to hold the other under the water.

Hiiro and Duo Yui, though living in the same house, sharing the same parents, eating meals at the same table, still treated each other as bitter enemies. Bitter enemies that yearned endlessly for the other's blood.

The drama was to _die_ for.

…………………

"What is Usagi like?" she asked thoughtfully, slowly stirring her half-melting ice cream.

Trowa looked up and paused to think.

The two were a very noticeable pair in the ice cream shop that was mostly geared toward high school students. It was uncommon that the small shop ever received such impressive people, Rei with her startlingly bold beauty, Trowa with his collected and thoughtful charisma, and both clad in casual-wear that belied its cost in the hundreds.

"I can't honestly say I noticed Usagi before you brought her to your house."

Rei raised an eyebrow as if saying "Oh?"

"She's not spectacular in any way. Appearance-wise … her hair is kind of a faded blonde, eyes a dark blue-gray that sometimes is mistaken for black." He paused to think. "She doesn't have much of a figure." He shrugged. "I've never heard of anybody particularly notable asking her out."

Rei frowned and twirled her spoon, slowly swallowing a delicate bite of her sundae. "So she's completely commonplace?"

Trowa nodded. "Average grades, not rich as far as I know … not particularly outspoken or charming. I don't believe she has any friends." He smiled faintly. "Are you so infatuated with her that you wouldn't even dirty your hands to come to her rescue against Hiiro?"

Rei frowned lightly and then eyed Trowa as if he was an idiot to not understand her reasoning. "Don't you see? For Usagi to get a guy like Hiiro, she must believe that nobody will ever come to her aid. She must be daring and resilient enough to withstand him. And she must interact with him, even negatively, enough to fall in love with him."

Trowa shot her an incredulous look. "I doubt even his mother can do that."

"Well, Usagi isn't his mother, is she?"

He nodded slowly, consideringly, as he eyed his ice cream as if it were poison. "You planned ahead." His eyes darkened and he looked faintly annoyed. "What exactly do you see in her?"

Rei's dark eyes caught his jade ones and held them. She didn't say anything for a long time, scooping up and dropping her ice cream mindlessly. Finally, she started, picking her words deliberately, unsmilingly, "Do you not approve?"

He stared at her and then looked down at his ice cream. Rei hadn't given him that lethal stare ever since they were twelve when he had shown up late at her birthday party and had forgotten a gift because he rushed to get back from Tokyo. "Choosing Usagi is like … choosing a dandelion in a garden of roses."

Rei's harsh expression broke and she smiled lightly. "I, for one, am quite taken with dandelions." She took another bite. "Besides, I think choosing Usagi is more like choosing dark chocolate from a box of milk chocolates."

Trowa blinked and then cocked his head lightly. "Are you implying that the more time you spend with Usagi, the more you'll enjoy her?"

Rei laughed softly. "I've always liked that about you, Trowa. You can think for yourself."

…………………

She walked back into the classroom after lunch and stared at the person sitting in her seat.

"What're you doing here?"

Duo looked up and slid his propped up legs off the table. "I asked to be transferred to this class. I thought you'd be lonely, Usagi Tsukino." At her silence, he grinned. "Rei is skipping with Trowa. I foretell that this will be far from the last time." He paused to laugh. "Hiiro is humiliated beyond belief and went home to change, probably skipping the rest of the day also."

Usagi frowned, picked up his books and dumped them onto the adjacent desk, setting hers down on her own. Duo looked ready to protest but she interrupted him before he could. "How did you transfer so quickly?"

His eyes met hers. "I had to sell my body for it." At her half-stunned, half-disgusted expression, Duo laughed. "You are one gullible girl, Usagi Tsukino."

She glared at him.

Duo shrugged and defeatedly got out of her seat after she half prodded, half shoved him. "It was easy. All I had to do was ask." At her puzzled frown, he smiled half derisively. "Any friend of Rei's has immense power in this school. Even the teachers are subservient to Rei, Hiiro, Trowa, me," he stopped short and looked at her, vaguely smiling, "and possibly you, Usagi Tsukino."

"Become Rei's friend just for that?" She made a face. "Sounds like something Hiiro Yui would do."

Duo slid into the seat beside her casually, ignoring the teacher as she called for attention. "That might be going a bit far, Usagi Tsukino. I doubt there's anybody in the country who hates people like that as much as Hiiro."

"You think so?"

He arched an eyebrow and looked askance at her. "You don't know yet?" He laughed shortly. "Then keep your ears perked. Sooner or later you'll hear the Hiiro horror stories."

She was silent for a long time but finally said, "Duo, stop calling me by my full name."

He laughed loudly, drawing half the class's attention from the teacher. "Why … I'm just trying to get used to the change in surname, Usagi Tsukino."

Her heart stopped. But she didn't reply.

…………………

Hiiro let the hot water pound on him for one more second before turning it off and leaving the shower to enter the living room-sized bathroom. Wrapping a towel around his waste, he exited, briefly gazed at the outfit a maid had set out for him, and got dressed.

Usagi had agreed on his being the most disgusting person she had ever met for yelling at Duo. Why would anybody defend a person of that status? He frowned and walked out of the room.

"Master Hiiro, would you like something to eat?" a maid inquired quietly from her post outside his door. He brushed past her without a word, walking on pensively.

There was no denying it. Hiiro Yui's parents and the household staff loved Duo almost as much as Hiiro hated him. And just as the love had carried over ten years, ever since the adoption, so did the hatred and animosity between the two siblings.

It wasn't necessarily that they had hated each other's characters and personalities for the last ten years. In fact, Hiiro had even gone as far as to imagine, when he wasn't in one of his infamous, murderous moods, how things would have turned out had he and Duo met in some completely different way. If he concentrated hard enough, Hiiro even, incredulously, saw the possibility of he and Duo becoming _friends_. _Good_ friends.

"Not in this lifetime." The dull mutter sounded unbearably loud in hallway.

He had always been the model child, the all-American student with superb grades, deep involvement in student organizations, incredible records of community service, and an athletic ability not to be rivaled when it came to tennis. That record, added to his mind-boggling wealth as one of two heirs to the Yui fortune and his stormy blue eyes, casual brown hair, perfect frowns and smirks, escalated Hiiro Yui to divine status at St. Gabriel's and even in the entire US. Peers feared and admired him for his perfection and though he didn't mind socializing with others per se, Hiiro had always been a reserved, calm, and quiet child, bearing many of his tragedies and victories in solitude.

So why would it be anything but fair for his parents to shower him with gifts and adoration? And why wasn't Duo long gone, cast back onto the streets where he belonged?

True, Rei had always said that Hiiro Yui had the potential to be daringly, intimidatingly dangerous and many at St. Gabriel's agreed. But was that a fault? Who didn't have that potential? Surely even conciliatory, intellectual Trowa harbored that potential. And it was obvious that speciously shy, quiet Usagi had that potential. Hiiro winced. He could still remember the tea trickling down his neck.

Duo was the exact opposite of Hiiro. Duo was loud and rash and easily angered. He didn't think before he acted. However, this didn't completely hinder his grades. Though a bit random and spontaneous, what Duo lost in tests, he made up in creativity and performance. His project and presentation grades pulled everything else up and he still got by easily with high Bs. And though he wasn't involved in any clubs, Duo was always the first name that popped up when others thought up party guest lists.

And though Duo's reputation couldn't even seek to rival his own, Hiiro still felt as if the competition was stiff and that he had to get his act together in order to pull ahead.

He hated Duo Maxwell. Hated, hated, _hated_. Hated him so much that, if given the chance, he would consider sticking a gun down Duo's throat.

…………………

This chapter was short. xD; Mainly because I had intended for the Usagi/Duo conversation at the end of the previous chapter to be in this one … but yes … it's only just barely four pages. xD;; It feels like a relief. xD; Um … ok. So no complete clarification on the Hiiro/Duo relationship. xD; No complete clarification on Duo's acknowledgment of Usagi's "new surname". Yes. Ok. Just trying to keep track of things. xD; Thank you for reading! I'll be gone for the next month – month and a half because of exams/vacationing. Sorry for the delay in updates! Yours, Angel.

**Teri:** Lol … funny that they're brothers? O.o; Methinks it's kind of dangerous. xD;

**Julian Katra:** Haha … I admire Usagi for that "food fight" xD; And this will be continued … for a very long time. xD

**Lavenderdream****:** Lol … thanks. :D Most of the plot is different. There are some … character parallels. xD; Like Hiiro and Usagi. xD; But … the love structure will also be similar .. xD; You'll see. :D

**Airlady****:** No completely explained yet. :D The explanation will probably come in trickles. xD; And I hope this remains a good fic until the end … and then you can wonder why you put up with it for so long. xD;

**Angelwings6117:** Ahh Casablancas. xD; I vaguely remember the story … in a sense, it did somewhat contribute to Rei's character. Well … all I remembered from it was that Rei's dad wasn't often with her and that she despised him [as much as a child could despise a parent] so … the dad was vaguely based on Casablancas. xD; I never read the entire translation though. O.o; As for Rei being as popular as she is in the manga … I didn't know that. xD; I just look at manga pictures of Rei and think that she's strikingly beautiful. xD; Yes. So. Haha. :D As for Hiiro treating Duo as a younger brother … O.O;;;

**Fire Dolphin:** Lol. I'm trying to make it so that Usagi isn't as gorgeous as she usually is depicted to be in fics … to make the point that she doesn't have to be perfect and beautiful in order to get perfect!Hiiro. xD;

**Usagi ****Asia**** Maxwell:** Lol thank you. :D And update soon! :D In the GW/SM category, preferably. xD; Well … I wouldn't say newer authors "suck" … it just seems as if … there's a lack of continuity. I mean … I haven't read a complete H/U fic in … a long time. xD; In fact … I haven't read a complete fic in a long time. xD; And it's saddening. xD; Because usually endings create the greatest effect. --; [methinks xD]

**Longangel77:** Thank you! And I'll consider it. ;D

**Sylvanisty****:** Thank you thank you! :D

**Black Aura-Sama:** Lol! King Duo. :D And it's a good thing you will never hate me. :D Because … well. I said no hints. xD; It's a lonnnnnnng road to the end. And Quatre/Wufei/others show up about … 3/7 the way there. xDxD; So they are important … but … sort of as a … well. Let's just say I could stop the fic before they appear and create a sequel. xD; Ok! Enough said! :D Thank you very much. :3 Being twisted is one of the few joys of this hobby. xD;

**Zanrui****:** Ack! Sorry! ::stabsff.net:: Urk … ::petsff.net:: [ff.net owns me … --;] Duo's brief cameo … but true, he will be a bit more serious. For various reasons. :D Ack! If the last chapter seemed fragmented then this one … oh gosh. Lol. xD; I have a tendency to do descriptions only with angst. xD;

**Datajana****:** Lol … yes. Usagi and Duo have much in common. :D

**Deathangelchainlink**: Hrmm … I think some of the characters are quite similar … and some plot elements are similar. xD; But … yes. xD; If you primarily love Lei [which I can't fault you for xD] then Meteor Garden II probably isn't going to be that good. Because it's focused almost completely on Dao Ming Si … and, as a subsidiary, San Cai. xD; There were some very cute SC/HZL moments though. O.o; But yes. Mostly DMS. --; I didn't like it as much as the first one … possibly not even half as much. xD; [sorrysorry!]

**Jupiter Angel**: Lol … so many questions! No, Rei doesn't know Usagi is her sister. Usagi, however, does know. I vaguely explained why Usagi's father "left" in the previous chapter. xD; And … I can't tell you anything else. :D

**Sailor Grape:** Hiiro's scary? O.o; Mooahahaha. :3 I wanted him to be intimidating but not … _scary_. Lol. xD; Yes, we'll learn more about his [extreme] disdain for Duo. :D Quatre will be showing up … halfway into the fic. But because this fic is so long … he still manages to play a _very_ important role. xD; Because I love Quatre too. :3 The Hino gene … lol. We'll see. :3 Thankyouthankyou! :D


	4. That Particular Incident

Disclaimer: Not mine.

Back :3 More insight on Hiiro/Duo relationship … that's about it. xD; Not _too_ displeasing of a chapter, in my most humble opinion, but far from brilliant. --; Enjoy? :3

**Chapter 3: **_That Particular Incident_****

It was hard to say whose reputation suffered more.

Hiiro, of course, had the advantage of time, for most of his life had been spent studying at St. Gabriel's and its divisions. But only after _that particular incident_ did it become painfully obvious that his good name at the school that has been acquainted with him since kindergarten was unbearably tenuous, based on intimidation, mystery, and, most importantly, money. And this lifelong house of cards built on the fragility of paper money was not enduring enough to withstand _that particular incident_ without damage.

Said damage was far from extreme, of course. After all, he was still _the _Hiiro Yui and girls still swooned at the sight of him. And still not one dared to refer to _that particular incident_ in bold, open terms if only because facing Hiiro Yui would be as safe as braving an avalanche, with anger of the same temperature.

But the wound was too close for comfort, the reaction of St. Gabriel's to _that particular incident_ was much too similar to Rei's ill-adapted use of _The Emperor's New Clothes_. And at the bottom of all this, was a _child, _a girl hardly older than himself, so short that she could pass for a fifth grader. Further, this girl was of no reputation, no wealth, no beauty, no status, no talent, no – no _nothing_. This was a girl he wouldn't even _look_ at in passing!

Still, with no small degree of satisfaction, he noted that she had suffered also, if not as extremely, for the disapprobation of St. Gabriel's horde of fangirls was counterbalanced by the rest of St. Gabriel's regard and admiration.

It couldn't be helped. Centuries of experience had led to the acknowledgement and cliché that the higher you are, the harder you fall. And Usagi's status was hardly half a foot off the ground.

That didn't mean he didn't bristle at the whispered ridicule of his fellow students, and that _most certainly _didn't mean he wasn't going to do something about it.

…………………

It was early enough in the morning that there were fairly few people in the courtyard, most cramming in last minute studying or copying homework. It didn't become _too_ clear how quickly news spread around St. Gabriel's until they walked past the school's imposing front doors and stepped onto the marble of the hallway.

Only then was it unmistakable how much _that particular incident_ had been discussed the day before as the usual deferential lowering of eyes and stepping aside to allow room for the foursome to pass was replaced with unabashed stares at Hiiro Yui.

By the time they started up the stairs, Hiiro was the only one of the four not trying to suppress snickering.

Rei fought a hard-won battle against smiling and shot him a grave look. "What can you expect? St. Gabriel's is a society of bored, rich kids."

Hiiro didn't spare her a glance.

"Look at it this way – at least now fewer people are deathly afraid of you," Trowa offered, biting back a small smile. "And you are by no means a pariah."

Duo shook his head and laughed outright. "No, no, Trowa, you're going about it all wrong. Those are the things Hiiro _wants_. You're just dampening his mood."

"Face it, Hiiro, Usagi is the celebrity of the moment. St. Gabriel's no longer revolves around you."

"No, Rei, St. Gabriel's doesn't revolve around me, it revolves around _you_." He didn't even turn around, hardly spoke loudly enough for her to hear.

She rolled her eyes. "But that doesn't mean you didn't imagine that it revolved around you. I _know _you, Hiiro. I know all your idiosyncrasies and fallacies. I know how you are more than fully aware of your so-called perfection and how your ego has swelled to the size of-"

He abruptly turned around and she started, staring up with black-violet ferocity. His expression, however, was so blank that she didn't know if he was going to hit her or laugh at her.

She knew Duo and Trowa were just behind her, tense and watching, gauging, for Hiiro's possible fit of rage.

Eyes coated with a skim of ice and voice delicately soft, she spoke first, "What, Hiiro? I'm not afraid of you."

He blinked. "I'm thirsty."

She started and watched him numbly as he headed for the vending machine. The breath she hadn't realized she was holding finally released itself, her fists unclenched, and she earnestly tried to still her thundering heart. From the way Hiiro paused to glance back at her and smirk triumphantly, she knew that he too believed actions to speak more loudly than words.

With the bottle of frigid water in hand, he walked on, and, reluctantly, she followed.

Trowa glanced toward Duo to catch him making a face at Hiiro's retreating form.

"Hiiro can be such a freak sometimes."

The taller of the two nodded and suppressed a smile. "Agreed."

…………………

For one, brief, brilliant moment, she had thought that, miraculously, Hiiro had taken it upon himself to apologize to Usagi. That horribly short moment of shining euphoria was rudely cracked by the deluge of cold, bottled water on Usagi's head.

"Miracles don't happen…" she bemoaned quietly, too stunned to move as Usagi simply closed her eyes and took a deep breathe, bearing the act of retribution with silent forbearance.

"Especially not with people like Hiiro," Trowa added, a pained expression on his face despite his disregard for Usagi.

In utter silence, the three plus Hiiro watched as Usagi calmly wringed out her wet pigtails. Even Rei, with her partiality to her childhood friend, couldn't delude herself into thinking Hiiro was staying to see if Usagi was okay. It was apparent he wasn't leaving until he got what he came for – shame, fear, and repentance.

With her hair as dry as it was going to get, Usagi turned back to her half-opened locker and gently closed it before facing Hiiro again, looking up at him with disinterest.

In one, swift motion, she punched him in the jaw.

Before any of them could react, she was gone, stomping down the hall and turning the corner.

"You're lucky that it's so early there weren't people to witness this," Trowa remarked quietly after the obligatory moment of silence.

Duo snorted. "Yeah, or this would have been known as _that **other** particular incident_."

Rei sauntered up to him and eyed his jaw, sincerely hoping for a severe bruise. "Well, Hiiro, what do you have to say for yourself?"

He glanced down at the empty bottle in his hand and, with a slight air of disappointment, replied, "I wish I'd bought tea."

She snatched the bottle from his hand and stomped off after Usagi but stopped, turned abruptly and, in a moment of frustration, aimed the bottle at his head.

It angered but didn't surprise her that he caught it in one hand and raised an eyebrow at her.

She turned on her heel and turned the corner.

After a moment of staring after her with some hint of regret, he turned back to his audience of two. With hardly a glance and no words at all, Trowa brushed past him and followed Rei.

He eyed Duo warily. "This never happened."

The braided teen mock bowed and extended his arm with an exaggerated flourish. "Though _you_ might lack it, _I _still have a vestige of respectability and fraternal loyalty in me."

…………………

Hiiro Yui's cruelty was no novelty to her.

Usagi sighed and seated herself in an isolated corner of the library.

She knew as well as anybody that though Hiiro _acted_ indifferent to the admiration of his peers, there was nobody else as acutely aware of his own distinguishing attributes. And there was nobody else as proud and vain about them either, she was sure.

Hiiro Yui was no stranger to his own status and had never bothered to hide behind the mask of modesty, as far as she knew after transferring to St. Gabriel's abruptly in the middle of the last school year.

In short, Hiiro Yui bowed to no one. Not even to Rei, and especially not to a nobody like Usagi Tsukino.

"Usagi?"

She jumped at the sound of her name and looked up to lock eyes with an apprehensive Rei.

"You didn't cry … did you?" she asked hesitatingly, timidly taking the seat opposite of her. Usagi was struck by this side of her – Rei Hino had certainly never been described as _timid_.

"No, of course not. Not when Hiiro Yui demands tears." She smiled sarcastically.

Rei looked relieved and settled in her seat. "Good."

Minutes ticked by as Usagi stared out the window and Rei silently observed her.

Trowa was not completely inaccurate in his less-than-flattering description of her physical attributes. It was true that Usagi had almost no figure, true that Usagi was nothing compared to most of the girls she had known and associated with. But there was a certain air of dignity in Usagi's pert nose, a taste of elegance in her long, if light, eyelashes, a hint of sweetness in her small mouth, a spark of wit in her blue-gray eyes.

Usagi, Rei felt assured, was in no danger of being called ugly, but at the same time, she was also despairingly far from being called gorgeous. But with makeup, perhaps…

"Rei, tell me, why does Hiiro hate Duo so much?"

The ebony-haired girl started and blinked. "I can't say I know the whole story…"

Usagi conjured up a look of interest but this wasn't the question she had intended to ask. She didn't want to know about _Hiiro_ Yui, she wanted to know about _Duo_ Yui and just how he was acquainted with Usagi _Hino_. However, a query about the former was as close as she dared to get to the latter.

"I know that Duo once lived in a semi-official orphanage so destitute that most of the children ran wild in the streets as thieves. That is as much as _Duo_ ever tells me. But you can imagine how that would wound Hiiro's pride – being pampered as a child and then suddenly related to a boy of no status or wealth. And then there was that other incident…" she trailed off and looked uncertain, eyeing Usagi as if gauging her trustworthiness.

"I once dated Hiiro."

Usagi started. The revelation was so abrupt that she barely bit back a loud cry of astonishment in the quiet library. "_You?_ Date _him_?"

"He's really not as bad as you think," Rei defended quickly, eyes briefly flashing with irritation. "He's kind enough around Trowa and me … just not so much amongst people he hardly knows."

Usagi made a face. "That explains his behavior to _me_, but what about Duo? Certainly a brother qualifies as a person he knows?"

Rei took a deep breath and folded her hands in front of her. "I didn't get introduced to Duo until after I started dating Hiiro … and … my preference for one brother led to my break-up with the other."

Usagi stared.

"That injury was much too intense for Hiiro's pride. His already deep dislike for Duo intensified." She paused and thought for a moment. "I don't flatter myself into thinking that that's the _only_ reason … but I don't know the rest of it and whether or not you'll know entirely depends on either Hiiro or Duo."

"B-but … surely even His Majesty can't hold a grudge against his own brother for so long!" the blonde exclaimed, half in astonishment, half in disgust.

Rei pursed her lips. "That's the thing. The resentment has lasted for over a year. And I want you to stay away from Hiiro for a few days. I'll talk to him."

Usagi smiled to herself. With no small amount of care and tenderness, those words were uttered, and Rei gazed at her so intently this moment, so determined to insure her safety, that Usagi almost confessed her identity right then and there.

But reason kept her in check. However, her heart was not unmoved. And so, she promised herself, she will make friends with the girl that kept her from living with her father, with the girl that said father would always love more.

"Ah, that's the bell." Rei stood and beamed down at her. "Walk to first period with me?"

She grinned and consented in return.

Only upon exiting the library did something hit her – Rei had mentioned that _Duo_ had suffered Hiiro's extreme hatred after the love triangle fiasco the year before … but it was obvious that _Rei_ herself suffered no such aftereffects. Hiiro, Trowa, and she remained the triumvirate of St. Gabriel's.

Was it then possible that Hiiro chose to continue his affections for Rei?

Was it then equally possible that even at this moment, Hiiro Yui harbored feelings for an indifferent Rei Hino?

Usagi bit her lip uneasily. The idea warranted some rigorous contemplation.

…………………

Oh goodness. xD; Can you keep track of it all? The realities? The hypotheses? Does Hiiro still love Rei? O.o; Does Trowa? Does Rei still love Duo? Did Duo ever love her back? Does Duo love Usagi? Does Hiiro? Where is Quatre? And Wufei? And etc? xDxD; Yes. I leave you with those thoughts. ; We shall see Thank you for reading :3 Yours, Angel.

**Ja**** Rule:** Yesyes, I support and back Duo in saying that Hiiro sometimes can be such a freak. xD;

**Koldy****:** Lol … such brevity is amusing. xD; Especially during the period of simple facial expressions…! O.o;; They made me laugh. xD;

**Key1:** Hiiro=semi-freak at the moment. xDxD; Yay I hope your opinion holds true until chapter forty-whatever. xD;

**Usagi ****Asia**** Maxwell:** O.O;;; That's drastic. --; But you're the best judge of its necessity. :3 As for your summer reading … I'd like to point out with some surprise that I finished The Poisonwood Bible hardly a week before you did. O.O;; Coincidence? Perhaps. xD;; And … what exactly is key club? O.O;; Please enlighten me. xD; I wish you luck with your future writing. :3

**Sailor Grape:** I admit to cruelty … lol … but I'm surely not as cruel as Hiiro … right? …o.o;;; Right?? xD; I love how you phrased it – how Hiiro embraces his egotism. xD; It's startlingly accurate. :3 And I believe this chapter actually answers two of your questions/wishes … O.O;; Yes, I'm shocked also. xD;; Thankyouthankyou! You flatter me so … xD;;

**Ceso****:** Lol … is it a pretty picture? xD; Minako will show up … quite a bit later though … sorrysorry!!! It's just that … she isn't exactly _there_ yet … y'know? xD;

**Yami****:** Thank you ; I'll supply the twists if you'll supply the comments. :3 Lol.

**Sere Star:** Lol … it reminds you of Leave Me Breathless? I'd be much less surprised if you told me it reminded you of Hanging By a Moment since both this fic and that are based on the same storyline. ; But I can't say I'm not blushing. xD;; And I can't say whether or not it's Hiiro/Usagi … for suspense purposes. xD;; Let's just say there's a much greater possibility of it than say … Usagi/Rei. Kidding!!! My strange sense of humor. --;

**LunarPrincess****:** Rei/Trowa … I never really took a liking to it until after I started writing of it. O.O;; And it was either going to be Rei/Trowa or Rei/Duo … and yet, it might be both. xD;; The joy. Lol … and I wanted to make Duo more serious "bishounen" material. xD;; Instead of the random American that hits on every girl he sees. xDxD;; Not that the latter is any less lovable. ; As for Hiiro … it's always difficult for me to write him as soft … because I've read tootoo many times fics with Hiiro thinking "why am I feeling this way?" etc … --; No offense!!! It just … pains me. xD;; But it's also quite difficult for me to transition from horrible!Hiiro to I-think-I'm-in-love!Hiiro. xD;; A fault, I'm sure. :x As for Usagi's similarity to Relena … I agree completely. xD;; That is why I have trouble with Relena-bashing … it seems to be treachery to Usagi's character. =.=; Not to mention you can't just _hate_ a person with so little care. --; If that makes sense. xD; Ahh!! OOC-ness … xD;; It's been a long time since I've seen Sailor Moon … but the acute memory of cringing at Usagi's dubbed anime persona remains fresh in my mind. xD;; I don't think I've ever written Usagi like that, whether it fitted the fic or not. xD;; In retrospection, it seems as if, at least in GW/SM, Usagi's personality has been warped in everybody's minds … of course, people tell me that the manga Usagi is much more mature … but still, I'm sure she'd be shocked to find herself portrayed thus. xD;; I really don't know what to do with OOC-ness … so I'm not doing anything … lol. xD;; But to me, she still remains Usagi, in essence. xD;; Thank you for your support and time! 3

**Datajana****:** Lol … you flatter me. xD;; It only seems like more than three because if I chopped it up to the average length of a chapter around here, it'd be five or six. xD;; See? Lol … but still, the flattery does not go by unappreciated. xD;; Summer vacation … will be busy. xD;; But I hope I'll enjoy it. ;

**Zanrui****:** Thank you! ; Yes, I didn't mention I was almost/kinda/sorta/fairly satisfied with the previous chapter … xD;;; But upon rereading in order to refresh for this chapter … it still seems horribly sophomoric … ;-; But well. xD;; And I didn't quite understand what I was trying to get at in Hiiro's personality until you and Sailor Grape mentioned it – the utter lack of notice of his pride/narcissism and the possible approval of it. xD;; As for dandelions … lol – they remind me of childhood. ::gets teary-eyed:: xDxD;;

**Lilaclight****:** Lol … I'll explain the Usagi/Duo relationship sooner or later … o.o;; Most, if not everybody will be introduced … though the main characters will remain Usagi, Duo, Hiiro, Trowa, Rei … but, surprisingly, Quatre is extraordinarily important to the plot … despite not showing up for the next fifteen or so chapters. xD;; I'd say Quatre is more important than Trowa … but that has no meaning right now. ; Thank you very much. ;

**Black Aura-Sama**: Naruto ice cream? O.o;; Whenwhen? Wherewhere? Tell me, please! xDxD;; recent Naruto fanatic. xD;; And nothing terrible is going to happen. --; In my opinion. Possibly cruel … but not _terrible_. xD;; Lol … and I don't understand why the birthday/present/Tokyo thing was funny … but am grateful that you find humor in any of it. xDxD;; Thank you :3 King Hiiro is flailing… xD;;

**Riru-chan****:** Lol … thank you. ; Though I wouldn't go as far as brilliant … xD; Maybe tolerable. xDxD;;

**Alexz****:** Thank you! :D Here's more. ;

**Airlady****:** Thank you! ; And it seems such a surprise that Duo knows something … xD;; Kidding. ;

**Lavenderdream**: Lol … thank you. :D What a relief … ; I hope this chapter further clarified on some things. xD;;

**Kazumi Tachikawa:** Lol … thank you. xD;; But might I direct you to Hikari-chan's Hanging By a Moment? O.o;; After you read it, _that_ will be by far the best MG parody you've ever ready. xD;;

**Concrete Tenshi:** Thank you. ; This chapter is only about half a page longer but … so? xD;;

**Lady ****Lydia****:** More than one person falls for Usagi. :3 That's all I'm saying. xD;;


	5. Mr X

Disclaimer: I no GW, SM. Bleh.

**It sucks. S-U-C-K-S. --;** But it's something. [that I wrote twice. Grr. And it still sucks. P] And until I have EG edited, I beg of you to please live with this. ; This useless fodder to this empty fic. --; But urk … no, I'm not suicidal. xD; And I'm not starving for attention [on second thought… o.o; lol] But this was written before I tried [rather astringently] to improve … so it still sucks. xDxD; Yes, that is the limit of my vocabulary. ; Please live with it…! ;-; This is all I have written completely and I'll have something up by … the end of September [but let's not be _too_ hopeful with the girl who spelt "peeked" "peaked" _twice_ – that I've seen – without realizing it for more than a few months --;].

Thank you all for being so endlessly patient! …I envy you. xD; And don't bother making an effort to enjoy this chapter … it's not ever going to happen. xDxD;; [please don't take that as a call for pity --;]

****

**Chapter 4: Mr. X**

"Miss, I was asked to give this to you by an anonymous gentleman."

Rei didn't look up, simply waved her hand lackadaisically. The waitress set the platter down and walked back out of their enclave of the café.

A moment of cold but honey-lit silence passed as Rei fiddled with a strand of her hair.

"Well, aren't you going to open it?"

Dark eyes glanced up at Usagi as Rei heaved a sigh and shifted for the fifty billionth time that afternoon, crossing and then uncrossing her legs, tapping her fingers, twirling her hair, biting her lip … if Usagi didn't know better, she would say that Rei was nervous.

But why would that be? After all, _she_ wasn't the one dragged to some extravagant restaurant without being offered an explanation – not even a hint! – and _she _wasn't the one horribly out of line, associating with a girl whose spending money was three times her rent.

Usagi started at the sound of the fortune cookie cracking. Rei left it there, basking under the dimmed light of the room they'd requested, simple compared to their baroque, but not gaudy, ambiance.

"I come to this café often."

The blonde stared at her. "Do you really call this a café? There are reservations … and private rooms … and the cheapest thing on the menu is ten hours of my salary."

Rei didn't seem to hear her. "Because I came so often, people from St. Gabriel's started to notice it. That is," she paused to smile, "rich people started to notice it."

"So you brought it business? Shouldn't they be giving you things worth more than a fortune cookie?" Usagi laughed a little. "I can talk to the manager for you, demand a percentage of the profits. Who owns this place?" She was faltering at this point; Rei was staring at her unsmilingly.

"My father."

Usagi hesitated before uttering a soft, "Oh."

"So they also started frequenting this place; it expanded, and soon everybody became aware that Rei Hino oftentimes came here to have her coffee. So," she pushed the tray with that one fortune cookie to Usagi, "guys started leaving me notes here." Her eyes narrowed and she looked as if she wanted to sneer at the fortune cookie. "It's annoying if nothing else. And after awhile, the novelty wears off."

Another break into silence as Rei clasped her hands and then unclasped them, her manicured nails flashing and clicking.

Usagi looked up at her through her eyelashes. "Aren't you going to read it?"

Rei seemed startled by the very notion and hardly contained a giggle. "Why? It's a waste of time. I can't go and meet every guy who demands it. I won't be home until midnight, for one. You can't…" she smiled conciliatorily. "You can't be serious?"

The blonde forced a smile. "But maybe you should … at least apologize?"

Rei looked up at her, her head tilted, her eyebrows arched, her dark, prominent features startling against her pale skin, and blinked. "_You_ can go apologize to him if you want. _I_ can't make it a habit or I'll be apologizing to everybody. Just … don't be so nice that he actually thinks I feel sorry for him."

When she looked up again, she caught Usagi smiling at her, eyes filled with laughter. "What _now_?" The phrase seemed to ruin the mood, cross and barbed in the warm atmosphere.

"That was step one to kindness, Rei."

And at that moment, she could honestly admit that she thought Usagi beautiful.

…………………

He tapped his fingers against the rim of the steering wheel, glanced at his watch again for the fifteenth time that minute, and drove forward an inch.

Rei was going to kill him. And then resuscitate him to kill him again. Ahh, the famous Hino rage, he could just imagine it. But it gave him chills to imagine it, so he didn't.

He glanced around and eyed the car to the left of him. A man and a woman – husband and wife? – both bored, waiting out the traffic jam. Perfect.

He opened the door and got out of the champagne-colored Benz, tapping on their window, dark-colored suit a bit wrinkled but still not without an air of respectability. The woman glanced at him and the window rolled down.

"Excuse me, ma'am, sir," he paused to smile as charming a smile as he could muster, "if you could please drive my car to Sub Rosa – it's a restaurant and here's the address – there's a GPS tracking device in my car, if you need the directions." He paused to dig into his pocket and pull out his wallet. "Here's two hundred dollars." He thrust it at them. "Once you get it there, I'll give you two thousand more. And…"

The woman was already getting out of the car. He gratefully handed her the keys and she gratefully took the money. With that, he took off, zig-zagging off the highway and sprinting toward Rei and her famous temper.

…………………

"He's late," she muttered.

Usagi didn't look up, concentrating on unfolding the creased paper of the fortune-note. The words were written in a strong, regular hand and when she smoothed the paper, she could feel each deliberate indentation the ink marks made.

_Rei-_

_I have no talent with words but much less written than spoken. Against all dictums of pride, respect, and loyalty, I find that I remain attached to you. We need to talk; please meet me at the center of the school gardens, next to the fountain, __4:30__, Monday afternoon. Yours ever,_

And an "X" marked the signature.

"The gardens? The center? Where would that be, Rei?"

But before Rei could answer, the maitre'D ushered a man into their room and Rei looked up, glowering.

"You're late," she growled. He smiled, mumbled an apology, and fell into the chair between the two, panting slightly.

"There was traffic. I ran here, gave my car to some lady I've never seen … I wonder if I'll ever see that car again," he sighed and paused to catch his breath, ignoring Rei's ominous countenance. He looked up and caught Usagi's startled gaze. "Who is she?" He frowned at Rei.

"This is Usagi Tsukino. Usagi, this man who has absolutely no sense of punctuality is Mr. Kaidou, my father's top assistant," Rei offered, hardly glancing up.

Usagi smiled mechanically and shook his hand. He looked startled. "Usagi Tsukino, huh? It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Okay. Why are you here?" Rei stared at him.

The light-haired man sighed. "I remember when you used to smile at me and be happy to see me, Rei. What happened?"

"Why are you here," she repeated as if he was hard of hearing.

He sighed again, more heavily this time. "I came just to see that you're safely in town, just to check up on you for your father. Do I need another reason to see your gorgeous face?"

"My father isn't the type of man to waste money for plane tickets from Tokyo to LA and then back just to check that I'm safe. Why are you here?"

"With all due respect, Miss Rei, you don't know your father very well. So you don't know what kind of money he's willing or not willing to waste." He reached over to touch her comfortingly on the shoulder. She jerked back as if he just threatened to strangle her. Laughing it off, he said, "Rei, it's about time you stopped being a spoiled princess. Right now, I, as your father's successor, have more influence and authority than you, as your father's underage child. And I believe I can say, with the utmost belief, that your father loves you very much."

"He loves me very much, huh? Well, does he love that illegitimate child of his just as much?"

Usagi tried to make herself as small as possible. She understood that she was here as Rei's emotional support but at the moment, more than anything, _she_ needed emotional support. The twenty or so year old man sitting between them shot her a furtive but sympathetic look. She looked back bravely, the note that Mr. X wrote to Rei clutched in her hand, trying to convince herself that Rei just wasn't empathic enough, rather than cruel, to understand how uncomfortable she would be sitting in on a personal spat.

"I'm not here to talk about that. I came to see if you're doing fine. You, apparently, are, so my job is done. Now, if that woman and her husband happened to have been carjackers in disguise, will you drive me to the airport?"

Not even a breath passed before the adamant answer. "No." With that, Rei stood up and walked out of the room.

"I'm sorry you had to bear that."

Usagi nodded. "I understand. Rei doesn't know who I am."

The man sighed. Usagi got up to chase after Rei.

…………………

They were just exiting off the highway when Rei first spoke. "St. Gabriel's stands in the middle of one of the US's largest gardens. You might call it a … charity garden, I suppose. Philanthropists and others donate money to help maintain it. Out of convenience, people call it St. Gabriel's garden, but my family doesn't own it."

"I see," she replied softly, catching onto the random topic. "So where is the center of it?"

"The center is just behind St. Gabriel's. There's a path between two rows of rosebushes."

"And the fountain?"

Rei had to swerve to avoid crashing. She turned to stare at Usagi. "The fountain? How do you know about the fountain?"

"It was in the note from this afternoon." She held it up for proof. "And about this afternoon … I can't believe you dragged me from second period, made me skip school, just to sit and watch some personal meeting between you and your father's representative."

Rei was about to open her mouth to snap back but, thinking better of it, she sighed. "You're right. I just didn't want to face Mr. Kaidou on my own." A pause. "But the fountain. Very few people know about the fountain…"

"It's almost 4:30. I need to go apologize to this guy," Usagi told her, "so can you drop me off behind St. Gabriel's?"

Rei nodded, turning onto a narrower road that entered the St. Gabriel's gardens. "In the center of the garden, if you walk down that path, you will be interrupted by something. That is … what very few people know as 'the fountain'." Rei hesitated as she slowed to a stop and Usagi moved to get out.

"Whoever you see there, Usagi … be gentle on him, okay?"

The blonde smiled. "Of course."

…………………

He could feel the faint breeze from the air conditioning vent. There was no sound save the whooshing of wind against the window. There was no movement.

And then he blinked.

"What did you say?"

"Kaidou emailed you. He's still on the plane right now. He says that Miss Rei and Miss Usagi-"

"I heard all of _that_!"

The man fell back a step, intimidated by Mr. Hino's roar but not surprised. After all, with the behavior of Miss Rei and Miss Usagi, there had to be _something_ of a quick temper in family gene pool. And Mr. Hino was famous for it.

"What_ I_ want to know is _why_ you told me that Rei was staying in Paris for another term. _Why_ you told me that Usagi will be transferred from St. Gabriel's before then. And just _how much_ I'm paying you, because whatever the amount is, consider it cut in half." The tall, handsomely-featured man paused to take a breath, fuming.

The messenger withstood all this unflinchingly and spoke again at the next opportunity. "Mr. Hino, Kaidou also reported that Miss Rei and Miss Usagi are friends at the moment."

That startled him. "Does Rei know?"

"Kaidou reports that Miss Rei does not know Miss Usagi's relationship to her, and Miss Usagi confirmed it verbally."

He was silent. The assistant waited for the anger to cool off before his next line.

"And Kaidou mentioned that a man and his wife stole the golden Mercedes he drove in to meet Miss Rei."

This was the only news Mr. Hino seemed to take pretty well – he shook his head and brushed it off.

"I want you to watch them more closely now. Change the weekly reports to biweekly reports. And tell Kaidou to visit me the instant he steps off that plane."

The assistant bowed and stepped out of the room. After all, in this building, as in many others around the world, Mr. Hino's word was law. And that was that.

…………………

She followed the path, under the shade of overarching trees. Rei had said she would be interrupted by something, but just what that something was, Rei had failed to mention. It made her wonder if perhaps Rei knew exactly who she would meet at the center of garden and wanted to keep it a secret from her, tricking her into doing her dirty work.

So busy was she pondering what _would_ interrupt her that she didn't realize what _did_ interrupt her.

"Usagi Tsukino?"

She started. The voice had the amazing capability of making her name sound like an expletive. Scowling, she looked up and met the blue, blue eyes of His Majesty.

…………………

Bear with me, please. --; This and others will be, I suppose, on hold until I get my objectives straight and probably [hopefully] finish EG – which will be by the end of next summer, thinking optimistically. xD; [kidding? O.o; I don't know. --;] Thank you for reading and putting up with me! Yours, Angel.

**Notes: **

1. Kaidou-san – from Casablancas, the translation that **angelwings6117** kindly pointed me to. :3 He was Rei's "crush" and her father's assistant. In Casablancas, Rei's father was a politician … but same concept – never at home, neglecting the family. So I borrowed Kaidou-san. :3

2. Sub Rosa – means, literally, "under the rose". It's taken to mean "in secret" because before, a rose was hung over a meeting to symbolize sworn secrecy. Yessu. :D

3. His Majesty – please tell me you're not confused about the epithet? :D

**Loner01:** Oh my goodness. O.O;; I don't think … I can't … oh my goodness. xD; I can't believe you found me here either. xD; I know you'll probably not be reading this … but I'll reply nevertheless. At first I thought you were flaming me. xD; You sound so very sarcastic. --; But I appreciate your compliment, very much so. :D And since I know you aren't the type to tell about my "cute romantic streak", I'll leave it at that. :3

**Lilaclight****:** Sorry this took so long. xD; But hopefully it's a bit more enjoyable due to my rewriting. --; [it'd better be … ::grr:: xD;]

**…don't even know what to call myself:** Lol. xD; Very nice name. ;D Urmm … the problem with that theory is that Duo wasn't the product of an affair like Usagi was. xD;; But that's … similar to what I'm planning … except to a much greater extent [yours, that is]. :D

**Ceso****:** Lol … that was cute. xD; But … I can't wait to bring Minako in either … even though, by logic, I'll have to wait … --; Because with Minako comes a host of other characters that I'm terribly missing. ;-; I'll be anticipating that happy review. :D

**Ashika****:** ;-;! If I got that from anybody else, I'd think that was a flame. xD; B-but … we hurt the ones we love most, right? …right?? xDxD; I haven't been on AIM recently … but I'll have to interrogate you about this message when I do get on. xD;

**Julian Katra:** There seems to be more on Rei/Hiiro … doesn't there? ;D Ahh! Mulan! ::happytears:: I want to watch it again now. xD; I think that quote would apply to Usagi … I guess. O.O;; With Hiiro as the wind. xD;

**Concrete Tenshi:** Sorry … no answers … just more questions. --; I'm cruel, I know. xD; Don't worry about the length of the review … just the presence of the review. xD; And we'll see … about Rei's love life that Usagi is currently taking a healthy [perhaps too healthy --;] sampling of. :D

**TeNshI**** nO Hi:** Lol … wellll … I think those questions will be answered next chapter. Minus the Duo one. Duo will take awhile to reveal himself … unless Usagi gathers up the nerve to ask him about it. ;D

**Lady Light:** Thank you very much! :D

**Usagi ****Asia**** Maxwell:** Is Key Club more … Canadian than US-ian? O.o;; Or is it just … a substitute for NHS? O.O;; Ack … never mind. xD; I'll never understand it. xDxD;; Lol … thank you and have fun with summer reading. D

**Bunny-chan13**: Thank you! :D

**Datajana****:** Thank you. :D I'm not sure I can handle Usagi being weak. xD;

**LiLSeReNiTiE****:** Lol, of course [about the confusion]. :D Thank you, thank you! :D

**Lady ****Lydia****:** Duo knows more than anybody else. Ah, yes, a nice change, hmm? xD; As for your other theories … I'll leave you to your own devices. xD;

**Key1:** Lol … well, I wanted it to be complicated. xD; So it ended up as that long. --; And so I'll be done with it, hopefully, by the end of the summer after the summer after the summer of next year. xD; I'll congratulate you if you can bear it. xD; But I'll congratulate myself first. xDxD;;

**Ivy Tearen:** Thank you! :D

**Airlady****:** Lol … that's because the time for telling everything is still a ways off. --; But thank you veryvery much. I'm flattered. xD;;

**Frosty:** Thank you! O.O;;

**Riru-chan****:** Well … if you say so. x3 Lol … but perhaps it's because HYD itself is brilliant. :D Thank you very much nevertheless. :D

**Lavenderdream****:** Ahh … another twist. :D I think it gets less twisted as we progress … but that's up to your judgment. xD; Thank you, though! :D****

**Zanrui****:** The Rei-Usagi friendship is used to balance something that'll happen later on. --; [a hint! :3] Have you ever been to that one Rei/Duo shrine? O.O;; Preetttttyyy. Lol. I wish somebody would do that for Hiiro/Usagi. xDxD; But it was cute, yes. You're writing a Rei/Duo fic? O.O;; Please do! xDxD; And Quatre … lol Quatre. xD; When Quatre shows up, almost all the rest of the characters do with him. :D [I suppose that's a hint … in a convoluted way … xD;;]

**Black Aura-Sama: ::shakes** BA-Sama violently:: Tell. Me. Where. Naruto. Ice. Cream. Is. Lol. xD; Please? :D Haha … Hiiro and his soft skin. Hrmm … mmm. xDxD; And your guessing ability amazes me still. :D Your reviews are cute. O.O;; Lol. Just an observation. :D

**LunarPrincess****:** Lol … I always thought this was right smack in the mainstream that everyone's following. xD; I mean … it's romantic [or semi-romantic], it's filled with pretty, rich people, it's not extraordinarily angsty. --; Not a trait to be proud of but … my obsessions. xD;; Thank you! Are there other Rei/Trowa fics? O.O;; There must be. Well … I wouldn't say that I kept away from OOC-ness … xD; I try to make them not too _fake_ but I don't think they're necessarily in character. O.O;; But I'm still very flattered. Yes. xD; And you phrased it perfectly – how Hiiro's love grows from respect … I've never been able to put it into words – how to make Hiiro Yui fall in love, that is. xD; And this line makes me laugh [don't ask why xD] – "he might find it annoying, but also find it... charming". Thank you very much for clarifying for me. :D And boosting my inflated ego. xD;

**Liquid Ice:** You overestimate me. o.o; And, if anything, that is disheartening … xD; [it's not you, it's me. --;] "Hidden structures" seem a bit too much for something with as little thought put into it as this. O.o; I'm sososo flattered … and I'm sososo ashamed. xD; Yes, I have trouble understanding myself too. xDxD; By the way, not to be pushy, but did you finish what I sent you? O.O; And, with brutal honesty, did it suck? --; Thank you for taking the time and… --;

**MidnightGodess****:** Lol … between Duo, Quatre, and Hiiro? xDxD; Lesse now, both Hiiro and Duo are in love with Quatre but Quatre is in love with Rei and Rei is in love with Trowa, who is in love with Rei too but doesn't have the heart to leave Wufei all by his lonesome. xDxD; I doubt this will be a Rei/Wufei … _really_ doubt. Lol. Sorrysorry! Thank you for the review :3

**Sailor Grape:** Don't worry about the reviewing! O.o; And as for being cruel … does hiatus sound too cruel? O.o; Lol … thank you veryvery much but I'm anything but brilliant. --; Thank you for all your support and I'm truly … incredibly in awe of you and … yes. xDxD; fumbling with words. xD; But I think, more than anything, I'm desperately in need of a reality check. xD; So … it _was_ just an admonishment, hmm? :3


	6. That Special Person

Disclaimer: No own.

Firstly, as a premonition: **Black Aura-Sama** … your intuition amazes me. :3

…………………

**Chapter 5: That Special Person**

He loved her.

Still?

Or was she out of lucky guesses?

Rei stared at the digital projection of the time on her ceiling – 4:42 p.m. The woman giving her a pedicure peeked at the dark-haired girl and frowned. In the past year of working as Rei Hino's personal pedicurist, she had yet to see Rei silent – the girl was always moving, either pressing a cell phone to her ear or nodding her head to music.

Renee – that was her name – heaved a sigh and fought down the urge to roll her eyes. Couldn't the girl be _predictable_ for _once_ in her life? For just one _second_, she would love to know what Rei Hino was thinking, what Rei Hino was about to do. And then possibly send it off to the tabloids. Unless Rei offered her more money to keep it hush-hush.

So lost was she in her fantasies of power, she didn't realize Rei had gotten up and walked out of the room.

…………………

Usagi gulped and ignored the desperate desire to run. Instead, she looked around for a hole to hide in. Maybe she could convince him she was only taking a tour of the St. Gabriel gardens. At a very convenient time. To a fountain she knew nothing about. Yeah, yeah, maybe that'll work.

And maybe deep down, Hiiro was a kind, gentle, and most importantly, _peace-loving_ gentleman.

Hiiro took another step toward her; she took another step back. Forget the hole, she wanted something large and heavy to throw at his head. Maybe he'll have amnesia? She snorted. And maybe he'll develop a better personality.

All around her were rose bushes and willow trees. There would be no escape.

"Hi," she squeaked and waved at him. He stared at her as if he was reliving a childhood nightmare and was trying to win over it this time around. It wasn't a happy stare. Hiiro didn't strike her to be a happy person. And when Hiiro was finished with her, Usagi doubted she'd be a happy person, either.

"Why are you here?"

"Why am I here? Y'know, Hiiro, that is a very good question. Why exactly are we _all_ here? Some say we were put here by God and some say we were – okay, I'll shut up now." She stopped and took a deep breath. If anything, Hiiro was winning against this childhood nightmare, and Usagi didn't want to stay long enough to see what Hiiro did to conquered nightmares.

Seeing Hiiro's uncomfortable glance backward, Usagi wondered if bringing up the topic of Rei was a good or bad thing at the moment. Would Mr. X be happy to hear about his one true love? Or would he strangle the messenger who brought her refusal?

It seemed like too big of a risk.

"Hiiro, about Rei," she started. He jumped a little and shot her a suspicious look.

"What about her?"

"Ah, she has recently received a message, and ahh…ahh…"

The beating up childhood nightmare look again. "Ahh?"

"Ahh-nd. Ahnd. And. She says she'd like to work it out with you. That's all. Gotta go."

And she shot out of there like the star sprinter she never was, mentally screaming thanks to the coward inside of her.

…………………

She knew there were only three choices.

Hiiro, the megalomaniac.

Trowa, the introvert.

And Duo, the stupi – er – crazy one.

It seemed like such a pathetic array of choices when she thought about it. Rei stared at the television, looking but not seeing.

The secret was out, but she had yet to figure it out. Usagi knew – she must've found out, must've met him, must've … so many things.

And the fountain. It brought her nostalgia and longing, pity and regret.

The year before, she had specifically requested that a willow sapling be planted right in the middle of the garden despite that the middle of the garden was paved with concrete. It was allowed – nothing was too good for the park's most extravagant contributor, Mr. Hino.

As months passed, the tree grew and soon, strained against its barrier of concrete as hairline cracks appeared. She had joked that it represented the typical fountain in the middle of the typical park except greener, stronger, and so much more beautiful.

And Hiiro, so deeply enamored with her at that time, had taken her hand and, in a soft, absolutely serious voice, told her that his love for her would always be like the roots of that tree – deep, life-giving, and strong enough to break through concrete.

…………………

"You can come out now," he sighed, turning back around.

Trowa stepped out from behind the tree and offered a little smile. Hiiro squinted – was he blushing?

"What was that all about?"

Trowa looked uncomfortable. "I asked Rei to meet me here today."

The wheels in Hiiro's head turned, and his eyes narrowed. "Why?"

The nervous air around Trowa dissipated in an instant. "None of your business."

"I'll find out."

A slow, easy smile spread over Trowa's face. "I know you will."

…………………

Rei started the interrogation first thing in the morning. Usagi sighed and supposed it was a fitting end to her doomed, half-awake stupor.

"Was the person you met anybody … anybody you knew?" She was trying to act nonchalant, but her smile was wide enough to be a grin and Rei never grinned.

"I, um, that is…" Her heart beat painfully at her throat and in her head; Usagi glanced around for some poor sucker to cling to, the coward in her flourishing with her avid encouragement.

"Mornin', Rei, Usag-"

"Duo! Great to see you! I haven't talked to you in so long – let's talk. So, what've you been up to?" she chattered, latching onto his arm while leading him away. He jumped a little and shot her a startled look before glancing back at the storm cloud brewing over Rei's head. Today was not going to be his day.

When they were beyond Rei's range of vision, Usagi let go of him and heaved a sigh.

"You asked me what I've been up to? Actually, I've been up to a lot-"

"Oh, can it, Duo. I need to think up a plan to avoid Rei," she interrupted, waving a hand in his face while leaning against immaculate, white walls. "She owns this school … which means she owns all the security cameras." Usagi looked up and squinted, paranoia lowering her voice to a near whisper.

Duo smiled a little. "No, Usagi Hino, I don't think you quite understand what I've been up to."

She jumped at the rude awakening. _Usagi Hino_? She couldn't decide if Duo was taunting or blackmailing her. Or neither. Maybe Duo had no idea what that tone he used implied and she wouldn't have to strangle herself.

"I've been researching," he continued, drawling. "Did you know your father kept tabs on you? Everything you do," he paused to mirror her previous scan for cameras, "He knows when you do it, how you do it, and if you like doing it."

"You make my father sound like a stalker."

He shrugged. "He's protective. But do you know what else he does?"

She hesitated to ask. "What?"

Duo took a deep breath. "Inside this school, is a family, one student, who is protecting you. Kind of like … an undercover bodyguard. Except not paid. That family is doing it as a favor to Hino, but it's common knowledge that there are no such things as unrewarded favors to Hinos."

"Protecting me," she muttered, eyes scanning the floor, mad thoughts whirling through her head at eighty miles per second.

Duo smiled like a satisfied cat and looked at her through half-lidded eyes as if he had all the patience in the world, all the time in the world, and all the aces in the game. "Can you guess who that student is?"

"You?"

He stood and laughed. "Wrong, but good guess." With that, he turned and started walking down the hallway.

"Duo Maxwell, you stop right now and _tell me_ or I will … I will…" She didn't know what she would do. She didn't know what she _could_ do. She didn't even know if lying was one of Duo's hobbies.

Usagi's infuriated shout echoed in the early morning, empty halls of St. Gabriel's third floor.

Duo never turned back but raised a hand in acknowledgment.

_He thinks he's so smart_. Usagi wished that hand would fall off.

…………………

The instant the phone rang while she was in the middle of physics homework, Usagi knew she shouldn't pick it up. After all, she hadn't received a non-telemarketing phone call in over half a year. The last time was when some assistant of her father's had told her that she was moving to LA in three hours.

It was ridiculous. It was like she was some refugee, constantly on the run. And, in a sense, she was. Usagi Tsukino would forever be running from Usagi Hino.

"Usagi, there is a car outside of your complex to pick you up. I'll see you at Hiiro's; the driver knows where to go."

The blonde sighed. "Rei, you don't have to keep me hostage until I talk. Just ask me. I'll tell you."

"Who said anything about keeping you hostage?" the voice at her ear snapped. "I'm just inviting you to dinner."

That cheered her up. "Oh, well, if that's all then I'll get dressed right now."

A pause. Usagi waited. Three, two, one.

"Don't be stupid. Talk."

She almost laughed at Rei's unwitting predictability. "I saw … I saw Hiiro there. At the tree."

"Are you sure?" Usagi frowned. She had expected Rei to scream out of horror. Or swoon out of love. "Was he alone?"

"Yes."

Silence.

"I'll see you soon, Usagi." The line went dead, leaving Usagi to wonder if that last sentence was supposed to be comforting or threatening.

…………………

I very definitely rushed through this chapter. xD; Does the title make sense to you? I was trying to be subtle, I suppose. Lol. Doesn't often work. xD; You guys surprised me. o.o; I honestly thought that more would be skeptical that it was actually Hiiro. xD; But I'm satisfied that I am semi-able to deceive you. xD; Lol. It's a weapon; I'll use it … "well". :3 I love Duo. O.o; Don't you just love Duo? :D He's so mysterious. O.O; But how was he able to find that information on Usagi? After all, if it was that easy I mean, Duo is no hacker, especially not in here. xD; to get information on U. Hino, how come nobody else has? Hmmmm ;D Something to chew on. xD; Thank you for reading! Yours, Angel.

**Ashika:** Lol, hey, you told me the ":P" business after that review. xD; Well, before too … but I have a bad memory. xD; Thank you so much! You're so easy to talk to. :3 ::gets teary-eyed:: I-I-I… :3

**Sere Star:** For the first time in a while, I can honestly say that I updated soon. :3 Thank you! :D

**LunarPrincess:** Lol, I know what you mean. O.O; I've actually had dreams that I thought were real … for over three years. And then one day just … _wham_ … epiphany – it was a dream. xD; Ahh … maybe it's only me. ; Ahh, let me explain a little … the father and assistant _knew_ that Usagi was at St. Gabriel's, but they didn't know _Rei_ was at St. Gabriel's also. :D Because Rei was supposed to be in Paris for another while before returning. :3 As for Usagi's motives … I wonder if I'll ever get into that. O.O; I thought I'd just let everybody assume that it was in her personality to befriend anybody who tries so hard to be her friend. xD; But since you mentioned it … maybe I'll mention it. :3 For Usagi's beauty … I wanted to emphasize the lack thereof. Lol. Because it'd seem more … real, hmm? It'd seem as if … "wow, I can be in the same situation, act similarly, and get the same results!" Haha. xDxD; And I hope, for once, I didn't try your patience too much. :D

**Doughnuts of Miroku:** Lol, I'm very flattered. :3 And your pseudonym is just … lol. xD;

**Adorable Angel:** Lol. I understand completely. O.O; There've been so many fics that I gave up on for that reason … so many _good_ fics that I should probably go read … but it takes way less than four months for me to lose interest. xD; About two weeks is how long I'd last. xDxD; Unless it's a noticeable plot or something. O.o; I'll try my hardest to update quickly and thank you for the month leeway. xD; People usually give me about a week. x3;

**Airlady:** xD; They're subtle because they don't exist. :3; At least … I don't think there are any. O.O; And the "clues" in this chapter, I believe, are stated rather outright. xDxD; But thank you. :3 My ego lives another day. xDxD;

**Black Aura-Sama:** Call me strange but … do we sound alike? O.O; Ahaha, I'm flattering myself. xD; a daily ritual. :3 But you are the _only_ one that suspected me. :D I love your reviews. xD; They make me smile/laugh/choke. xDxD; And I loved Naruto ice cream. :3

**Firako-chan:** Lol … to the Emperor's New Clothes? xDxD; Ah, that seems so childish. --; But thank you. :3 I luff Rei. O.o; Because she's drop dead gorgeous and rich andand. xDxD; So she deserves to be haughty and proud and have a superiority complex. :3 And that was a very … good … lol. my wilting vocabulary question and assumption. :3

**Sailor Grape:** _Thank you so much_. ::tears:: Lol. xD; And everybody seems to suspect Rei so much. xD; Tsk. Poor Rei. xD; But I liked how you phrased it: _It seems that practically her entire being is puppeteered by others, even if she doesn't know it yet. First by her father, then by Rei... Good to know it runs in the family!_ And I wish it could apply more fully. ;-; Again, thank you, I've already said almost everything I wanted to in the email so saying more might be overkill oh, but if you insist… xD;. But just … ::bows::

**Ceso:** Ack … I almost feel like I'm leading you on. --; To be honest, Minako doesn't show up for another by semi-exact calculations lol 15-16 chapters. O.O; And once she does … her role isn't a _main_ one … though several chapters would be wiped out without her presence. .; Please forgive! o.o;

**…don't even know what to call myself:** I'm very glad you pointed Trowa out to me. I _would_ like to say that I thought that over and was just waiting to put it into action, but to be truthful, I never considered it. Lol. :3 But now I'm alerted and will explain in the future. :3 Saying anymore is going to completely give me away. xD; If I haven't already. --; If you suspect me of something … please don't comment. Lol. xD; I want to lead other people on. xD; As for the Duo bit … think simpler. :3; I'm not really creative or ambitious enough to dream up another sub-story so it'll be … simple. :3 Thank you very much – the Trowa bit … I loved it. :D

**Aphrodite2:** Lol, I'm flattered. And I hope it'll stay that way. O.O; The thing with favorite characters is that … I can read other characters and still enjoy them very much but it's still not with the exact same amount of passion. xD; But I'll be very sorry if you ever decide to discontinue reading. --; Thank you very much though. :D

**Julian Katra:** xD; For once, I took the hint. :3 Thank you! That play by play was cute. xD;;

**Lady Light:** Lol. xD; Would you be hurt if I asked "where have you been?"? xD; Sorry! But yes. They are sisters. Half-sisters, at least. :3

**Usagi ****Asia**** Maxwell:** Lol, you really didn't have to answer those questions. xD; I was just wondering … and I had a lot of spare time … so I wrote it all out. xD; Everything Golden isn't out yet … I wonder if it ever will be … and Key Club … Key Club…! xDxD;; ::head spins::

**Datajana:** Lol. Dramatic irony. I love it. :3; Thank you veryvery much! :D

**Riru-chan:** When Rei finds out … can you just imagine it? O.O; Lol, even in my mind it seems scary. xD; Thankyouthankyou. :D;

**Lady ****Lydia** Whether Usagi tells Rei about their relationship … that's a long way down the line. xD; And as for who Usagi likes … that's also a long way down the line. Lol. xDxD; Thank you! :D And sorry for being so difficult. xD;

**Bunny-chan13:** Lol. Yes. I do believe I actually answered all of those questions. O.o; That's a first. xD; Thank you! :3

**Sunshine Fia:** Lol, I don't believe anybody's going to fall for anybody else for a couple more chapters, and at the moment, Usagi would probably shoot herself before telling Rei about their familial ties. xD; Later, later. :3 _Way_ later. Lol. Thank you! :D

**LiLSeReNiTiE:** Haha, well, I suppose it depends on your definition of "the end of summer". Like mine … is coming up _very_ quickly. xD; But thank you. :3 And I'll try to answer those questions to the best of my ability. ;


	7. Shaken or Stirred

Disclaimer: No own. :D

A great big thank you to **Sailor Grape** for being a wonderful, very _neat_ [lol] editor. :D I would dedicate this to her but that might be more of a disservice. xD;

A great big thank you also, to all of you guys who took my "quitting" in stride. :D I'm surprised and relieved that you supported me. :D I thought there'd be somebody accusing me of a being an egotistical, attention-seeking sissy. xD; Or something like that. :3 But…

A fairly eventless chapter … just convoluted hint-dropping. :3

**Chapter 6: Shaken or Stirred**

Usagi stared at the silver ten passenger limousine at her door and groaned. Rei really knew how to waste her money. Either that, or Rei really knew how to waste Hiiro's money.

"Hey! Tsukino! Where did you get the-"

She signaled for the chauffeur to close the door before her landlady could finish yelling from across the yard. The rather obese woman jogged toward them just as the driver was getting back in. As the car surged back into the lane of traffic, Usagi turned to see the woman's beefy arms fall to her sides and her jaw drop, revealing a well-developed double chin.

Neither fear nor nervousness of a faux pas was the primary thing on her mind. After all, her father had always believed etiquette and manners were the hallmarks of a well-bred lady of a well-to-do family, and she had taken lessons even before preschool on everything from diplomacy to conversing about the weather.

However, Usagi couldn't say that she was not afraid. In fact, Usagi was very afraid. And that was why she dressed comfortably rather than extravagantly – she could make a run for it whenever the situation became life-threatening. Judging by how Mr. Pompous had received her the previous afternoon and how the scenario had ended, Usagi had no doubt in her mind that she would be high-tailing it out of there in no time at all.

She bit her lip and frowned out the tinted window. Rei had been overly curt on the phone. But what could make calm and poised Rei Hino so uncomfortable? So nervous? So _snippety_? Well, other than Mr. Snide, that was.

Usagi turned the air conditioning on high and took off her jacket in the slight chill of LA spring. She wondered if she could develop a fever before the twenty minutes of traveling time was up.

…………………

Duo looked much more subdued at home. And he was much more courteous, too, she observed, as he stood up with Trowa to duck his head in greeting. So etiquette wasn't dead.

But it certainly was dying.

Hiiro slouched further in his seat and shot both Duo and Trowa, but especially the former, the most hate-filled look she'd seen since Rei talked to Kaidou.

Usagi beamed at Duo and Trowa and attempted a curtsy. Rei stood and caught her before she tipped over. It was a little crazy; they were all wearing jeans and tennis shoes but acting as if they were attending dinner at Buckingham Palace. And if Rei was Princess Di, if Hiiro was Prince Charles, if Duo and Trowa were Princes William and Harry, then Usagi would have had to be the family cocker spaniel who had just had an accident on the royal carpet, subject to disgusted glares, tactical looking away, and stern baby talk. **__**

"We'll just have a light dinner. Mostly talking," Rei broke the silence. Usagi reddened as her stomach growled and four, royal pairs of eyes turned to look at her.

She forced a smile. "Did somebody say _light_ dinner?" When in doubt, her etiquette teacher had told her, a joke always salvaged the moment. Well, not this one, buddy.

Duo and Rei "courtesy laughed"; Trowa glanced at her and frowned; Hiiro positively scowled.

Rei cleared her throat. Usagi shot her a relieved look and thanked heaven for quick saves. "Usagi, I don't believe you've formally met Duo yet?"

The braided brother stood as she did and, as if on impulse, leaned across the square, glass table to kiss her twice, once on each cheek. "That's how they greet each other in Paris, isn't it, Rei?" He grinned flamboyantly and offered Usagi a flippant, "Nice to meet you yet again, Usagi _Tsukino_." **__**

But Rei wasn't paying attention to a word he was saying and neither was anybody else. They were all focused on Hiiro – Trowa and Usagi covertly and Rei openly, her dark eyes slicing through two and a half feet of air to glower at his profile. Usagi tugged at her collar and sat down. Hiiro's eyes went from Duo, to her, and then back to Duo.

"The drinks, Mr. Yui."

Ah, saved by the butler with the tacky, black bow-tie.

Usagi mentally sighed, and Rei looked relieved as she released her grip on the glass table.

"Four Shirley Temples and a lychee martini for Mr. Yui." He walked around and placed each drink in front of its owner.

Rei nodded at him. "I hope you don't mind, Usagi. I ordered for you since you were running a bit late."

"I-I don't drink." She managed a smile, pushing the cherry-topped drink aside and containing a grimace. Rei looked disturbed, Trowa was frowning again, and Duo was laughing into his Shirley Temple.

"Now's a good time to start," Hiiro retorted, leaning forward in his seat while reaching for the martini. Rei stopped his hand with her own. He shot her an exasperated look. She shook her head. Usagi rolled her eyes and decided in this world of private sign language and square tables, she was the fifth side of the square.

"Take them away. If Usagi isn't going to drink, nobody will."

The suit-bedecked man looked startled but, after a questioning look to Hiiro who sighed but nodded, complied. "What should I bring in, Miss Hino?"

…………………

Usagi cleared her throat and shifted a little in her seat. "So! What should we drink our … sparkling cider to, guys?"

Duo was laughing into his drink again. Laughing, laughing, choking. Oh, goodness, he was choking. Usagi eyed everybody else for hints on what to do, but Trowa and Hiiro did nothing beside look away and Rei looked pleasantly murderous.

"To new friendships," Rei started.

"And old ones," Trowa added.

"To puppy love," Duo managed between coughs. Everybody seemed to tense at that.

"To…" Hiiro trailed off and shot Usagi a heavy-lidded glare. "Money."

She tried to ignore him. "To success."

"To success," everybody sans Hiiro echoed and downed their cider.

It was chillingly silent as they dug into their Italian entrees. "Tell me, Hiiro. Your martinis. Shaken or stirred?" Usagi grinned playfully, but he just looked up, set his fork down, and wiped his mouth.

Out of the corner of her eye, Usagi caught Duo making a face into his lasagna and Trowa mouth "Oh, God" to himself.

And she soon found out why.

"When you have only spirits in a drink, like a martini or a Manhattan, you stir. When you have fruit, sweet, or multiple ingredients, you shake, because those kinds of cocktails are meant to be served, as Craddock was wont to say, effervescent, or laughing at you. When you drink a Manhattan or a martini, you want the texture heavy, cold, and silky on your tongue. You do not want effervescent, light, and frothy." Usagi nodded and tried to seem interested. Truly, she did. But it was hard to focus when Rei was gritting her teeth while eating and kicking Hiiro under the table. A glass table – everybody could see**. [1]**

"You do not want the thing laughing at you," he finished darkly, apparently immune to pain and fear. Rei looked one step away from tackling him and mounting his head onto the wall in her study.

Usagi's lips twitched upward in a ghost of a smile. "Wow, you really know your alcohol."

Trowa sighed and stood up. "If you're trying to say something, Hiiro, you can at least spare us the extended alcohol metaphors. It would've saved you from those bruises on your shin."

Usagi grinned to herself. _Oh, Trowa, you are the new love of my life._

Hiiro had the nerve to frown and retort, "I don't get bruises."

Trowa nodded absentmindedly. "I'm leaving. I need to … to … wash my hair or something. Maybe prune my bushes."

"You have gardeners for that, Trowa," Duo yelled after him before turning back. "What's with him?"

Rei shot Hiiro a pointed look, and Duo muttered, "Oh, right. The freak."

…………………

"You mentioned wanting to get caught up, Rei," Duo started this time, taking on the burden of starting yet another doomed conversation.

"Yeah. But I also wanted _somebody_ to keep his brooding to himself." She picked at her cheesecake.

Duo let go of a nervous laugh and glanced at Usagi, a clear "help me!" gleam in his blue-violet eyes. She ignored him.

"Where were you two on Monday anyhow? I mean, when we skip, don't we usually skip as a team?"

Rei frowned at the swirls of chocolate on white. "I went to meet Kaidou and took Usagi with me. He said my father wanted to check on me."

Duo offered a short "Ah" and looked like he regretted bringing up the topic, but Usagi most definitely did not regret it. Presented with the chance, she decided to press further, prod more, and make the evening generally more miserable.

"You mentioned an illegitimate child while there," Usagi started, ignoring Duo's vehement shaking of his head and Hiiro's steady stare into his drink, trying to find the slightest trace of alcohol in it. "How exactly did that happen?"

"Some woman slept with my father for money," she muttered.

"Maybe she was down on her luck?"

Rei slammed her fork down. "Well, couldn't she have been down on her luck with some _other _man?"

"So what would you," Usagi paused and took a deep breath. Duo's eyes were focused on her completely and a knowing little smile was playing on his lips. Hiiro was still looking for alcohol in his cider. "What would you do if, say, the illegitimate child was here at St. Gabriel's?"

Duo looked stricken and even Hiiro looked up to watch Duo struggle to breathe, a smile tugging on his lips.

"I'd make sure she never forgets the name Rei Hino. Or Rei Hino's fist."

"I-I see." Usagi nodded and smiled quickly. Duo looked as if he had just suffered a seizure. Hiiro looked amused for the first time that evening.

"Y'know, Rei, your relationship with this sister is just like mine with Hiiro, isn't that right, Hiiro?" Duo croaked out, managing a teasing smile. Hiiro didn't even look at him before replying.

"If you mean with the same degree of hatred, yes."

"Not funny," Rei snapped.

Usagi leaned forward. Now was her chance, before she lost them, to pull in the net.

"Do you happen to know what became of that woman? The child's mother?"

Rei cocked her head and the corner of her mouth turned up. "She died."****

…………………

Yes, yes, abrupt. :3 This chapter was, technically, absolutely atrocious. There were so many being verbs, so many adverbs, even some passive tense. O.o; And repetition, lack of expressive adjectives, YARGH. And a lot of mentioning of alcohol. O.o; Does that make the rating go higher? I'm so confused on this PG vs. PG-13 vs. R business. =.= Like, I mean, it's promoting good values, right? Lol … no drinking of alcohol, Usagi and Rei's refusal? They only had cider, besides. --; But yes. :3 School has started here. Lovely, lovely school. xD; Rather busy. I'll probably be straining the limits of updating. This was written during the last week of summer. :3 Please, please have patience like you always do! :D Thank you for reading. Yours, Angel.

**Notes:**

1. Shaken or stirred speech: Taken from an interview with some cocktail guru from [I think] A short explanation – basically lighter, sweeter, fruitier [lol] drinks should be shaken because that would create … more air bubbles and just … it's happier when it's shaken. :3 I don't know … I link shaking with laughter so … :D And then heavier, silkier drinks require stirring so that they're more … serious, more ponderous, more provocative, more pensive. xD; And makes me think _richer_, in quality and actuality. So … think … I don't know, pink vs. chrome. :3 Another note about the alcohol – note that they are drinking, without repercussions, and seem to have been on occasion, even though they are just in their junior year [or was it senior … hrmm … lol]. Those stupid, rich kids. xD; Kidding. :3 But basically a hint to the leniency you can buy with money. :3

**Clearday****:** xD;! I almost felt like it. But I wanted to stick with the pairs I have planned. More or less. :3 Still, Trowa will grow to be more important … I hope. --; I can't wait. xD;

**SailorKagome****:** Lol, thank you. :3 I can't agree but … thank you. :D But perhaps later, you'll learn to regret it? xD;

**Sere Star: :D** Another relatively quick chapter. :D …yay for me. xD;

**Chenymay****:** It is more focused on Usagi but Rei plays a role that is, in essence, only second to Usagi's. Not even Usagi's "beau" [yeesh, I don't like that word. xD;] doesn't rival Rei in importance. :D But, yes, romantically, we're focused on Usagi. :3

**Riru-chan****:** Lol. Trowa's so subtle. O.o; I luff him. xD;

**Jypsee****:** xD; It's always the next chapter … and the next chapter. Lol. Can't we all just be satisfied with the current chapter for another … year? xDxD;

**Uh-Oh:** Lol! Thankyouthankyou! O.O; I love you for that comparison. xD; And I'll be delusional and believe it. :3

**Lady ****Lydia****:** I think it'll be conflict conflict for a very very long time. O.o; In fact … this whole fic is just … conflict. Lol. Poor Usagi, Rei, and co … ::pets:: xD; ::gasp::! And I answered your question this chapter! :D I'm so proud of myself. xD; Not a happy answer but one nonetheless. :D

**Usagi ****Asia**** Maxwell:** Lol, you're so chipper. :3 I'm glad [not proud, but relieved] that I dropped those fics. O.o; And that I announced it. So I can't be fickle any longer and change my mind without making it a huge debacle. xD; But yes. :D

**…don't even know what to call myself:** Oh, goodness, I remember band camp. O.O; It's quite hot in the summer over here so … yeesh. P No, no, don't stop guessing! I like guesses. :D They make me think. :DDD But as for giving fics away, I know it's going to be very different with another person adding to it, but if I just stop, it's like all the people in them died. O.o; And that hurts. Lol. Still, you made me feel extraordinarily guilty. xD;

**Datajana**: Lol, Rei probably won't know for a while longer. :D Quite a while longer. xD;

**Lilaclight****:** I understand. O.O; When I'm not at home, I can't review or write period. xD; And I'm surprised – you're the first to tell me that you were _not_ confused. :D

**Sprinklescake67:** Lol, there'll be quite a few, in my most humble opinion. :3

**OtAkU****:** Hey, this is pretty soon, right? :D

**Sylverwind****:** I updated … fairly quickly…! :DDD

**Lady Light:** Lol, thank you. :3

**Moongirl****:** I _hope_ to finish. At the moment, very much so. But if that ever changes … bring it on. xD; Kidding. But yes. I wonder…

**Devilsheart****:** Kol to you too. :D

**Ceso**: ::tears:: Th-that's touching. ;-; Lol. Thank you! I'm surprised that you manage to enjoy it. xD; To be honest, even when I try my hardest to enjoy pairings I'm not particularly into, I'd still find my attention straying … o.o;

**Ashika****:** Heh heh … not so much anymore. :3 Research, that is. And I'm happy that you feel loved. :D Because you should. xD;

**Bunny-chan13:** Lol, that might have to wait for another chapter. xD; I couldn't answer your questions two chapters in a row. xDxD; That'd be an atrocity! Kidding. :3

**Dark Universe:** xDxD; I'm attracting dark people! :3 With fluffy romance schtuff. :D Kidding. But I'm glad. :D Whether you're dark or not. xD;

**LiLSeReNiTiE****:** I'm sorry! ;-; I can't identify what exactly is satisfying [well, other than a blatant "and he loved her"] and the degrees of unsatisfying-ness. xD; Because I know it already. --; But I'm sorry! O.o; It'll probably be that way for a while longer. O.O; A long while. xD;

**Airlady****:** I hope so too. O.o; I have a problem with confusing people. --; Even when I think it makes sense [which, I suppose, is because it makes sense in my head xD;] and that I've tied up all loose ends, there are still people that are lost to me. o.o; But yes. xD;

**Athena Kyle:** O.O; I don't know if Makoto is coming in. Because I have trouble writing about her … since she's so … _perfect. _Lol. She cooks well, she's a great fighter, she's gorgeous [like all anime characters. xD;], she's sweet, she's generous, she's friendly, etc. O.O; So I have trouble making her … realistic. --; But … perhaps, perhaps. xD; Help? :D

**Black Aura-Sama:** LOL. I loved that "or I'll eat you". xDxD; And I think you're more interesting than I am. xD; What with "or I'll eat you" and schtuff. :3 Yes, yes, I forfeit. xD; To your cuteness. xD; And good guess. :3 But not quite. xD; Maybe the Trowa guessing business was just a brief flash of brilliancy? Kidding. :3 Lol, Quatre, Wufei, and Minako show up … closer to Ch. 20 than Ch. 10, if I remember correctly. O.O; And Dorothy … if I need an extra, I'll be sure to use her. :D

**LunarPrincess****:** Actually, I do need that said every chapter. xD; Kidding. :3 I love your conjectures. :3 I love conjectures in general. They're just … interesting. :D Sometimes amusing, sometimes stimulating. :D But, yes, thanks for bringing up the question why Hiiro was there. It's been bothering me for a while … I have to find the answer. xD; And I thought Hiiro's willow comparison was uber romantic. O.O; But nobody else did. ;-; Lol. Maybe I'm not sappy enough. xDxD;

**Adorable Angel:** Thank you, thank you! :3 Lol, well, I can't stop writing until I'm out of college and stuff, at least. xD; A bunch of reports, essays, research, blahblah. xD; But, yes, I'm thinking that this fic will take quite a while. O.o; So, I'll be writing for a while longer. xD; Sad, but true. xD; Thank you for your support. :3

**Sailor Grape:** I'm glad you don't scrutinize everything. O.O; I'm glad very few do. =.= It's rather daunting. xD; Wow, that whole glass metaphor. O.O; And you say you're back with metaphors. P Lol. I hadn't intended for that contradiction to exist … it was a fluke. xD; But if it seems like genius, then, by all means, I'm a prodigy. :D With full names … I tend to use it when things are more formal, when they refer to a person as more of a figure, more of a legend/idol. xD; And I do it when people are trying to manipulate other people. xD; It's … more tension-filled, I suppose, than the colloquial first name referral. --; I've never seen My So-Called Life. O.O; Heard of it .. vaguely. Lol. Is it funny? xD; And the similarity between Duo and Hiiro … I have a problem with Hiiro calling other people by name. xD; In my image of him, it seems almost an incongruity … so he tends to just use the implied you. xD; I agree that Duo isn't stupid. :3 I was trying to refer to him as "stupid" in Rei's mind … but I tried to make it seem as if she, too, thought jokingly. I don't think anybody that can be a g-pilot is _stupid_. Lol. :3 They're all geniuses? Well, who knows. xD; And I don't quite understand why I've grown to like Rei so much in this. xD; If she were a real person, I would probably detest her. xD; Unless I was Usagi, maybe. xD; But … she's so perfect! And yet … not. Lol. And she's so cruel…! But not to Usagi. Or the rest of her little group. O.o; It makes me feel comfortable that she's on Usagi's side. :3 For now, at least. xD; Yargh. I just love you. xD; Yes, that was abrupt. xD; Marry me, please. :3 Kidding. But … something like that. xD;


	8. A Moment Like This

Disclaimer: Blarhblarh. :3

Dull. Enjoy? 3

**Chapter 7: A Moment Like This**

Sometimes what's right isn't as important as what's profitable. **[1]**

Usagi gulped and sneaked a peek at Rei's unchanging expression, shuddering at that faint smile touching her lips as though she herself had caused the death and was basking in the glory of silent self-congratulation.

"What?"

Startled, Rei looked up at Duo as if he was the last person she had expected to speak. "What do you mean 'what'?"

"The child's mother – she's … she's what?" He was sitting upright, gripping the edge of his chair with both hands, eyes dancing from a Hiiro staring into space to a Rei frowning at her drink to a Usagi biting her lip, resting for just a brief moment longer on the last. He looked back at Rei; she stared at him, glowering before a worried but uncannily sly look came over her.

"She died of a heart attack while on her job, if you know what I mean. The person she was with didn't even realize until he was through."

A strangled cry fought its way up Usagi's throat as she stood quickly, eyes wide as if close to tears. "I…I-"

A sharp glare from Duo quieted her and she took a deep breath before sitting back down, composing herself. "I can't believe that."

"Can you not?" That wily look took over Rei's face so completely that Usagi almost didn't dare to meet her eyes. "I think not even her child will be able to ascertain the actions and idiosyncrasies of her mother since she had never even met this mother. So, as a _perfect stranger_, Usagi, why do you say that?" Rei leaned forward as if being a foot closer would allow her to hear Usagi better. It was as if she was staring right into the eyes of her prey and laughing. Usagi suppressed a tremor and chanced a glance toward Duo. He shot her a helpless look.

"No, even I can't believe it. It's so … _vile _a scenario that I'm sure Usagi, being an unadulterated idealist, cannot bear to imagine."

Everybody started and turned to Hiiro. He met each pair of eyes coolly, smirking archly as if that line was nothing more than another thorn aimed to Usagi, another attempt to get even. The smirk went as quickly as it had come. "I'm surprised that you, Rei, can speak of it so easily." Usagi thought there was a tone of wistfulness in his voice and she was sure his eyes lingered on the dark-haired girl.

"I-"

"Let's move on to another topic, shall we? This one is getting depressing." Duo beamed flippantly at Rei as she glared at him for cutting her off.

Usagi seemed to smile at him with her eyes, and it was as if Duo'd seen her for the first time. There was a silent strength in her, a sense of purpose in her clear eyes, her childlike face, a dash of integrity in the set of her jaw, the mobility of her mouth. And yet she still remained approachable, she still maintained a certain softness, a certain grace.

That previous moment, Usagi's eyes had been resplendent with love for that mother unknown to her that he'd thought for sure her world would shatter and cut at Rei's explanation, and when Hiiro had offered his comment, her face had been so grateful as if he were an angel reaching out to her, promising liberation from the filth of reality. But while battling with Rei, there was so much indignation in her that her lower lip trembled … and right then and there, his fate was sealed. **[2]**

"Well, no matter what the case is, I have a theory that liars will always end up telling the truth. I studied psychology briefly while in France. That lying party will act just like a moth, circling closer and closer until it flies right into the deceived party's mouth. But I suppose it's better to wait. After all, exposing that person too early would be like giving him … moral support." **[3]**

Duo caught Usagi's eyes for one moment; a mutual thought flew through their minds – she _knows_.

They both jumped at Rei's light laughter. "Why does everybody look so gloomy? Shouldn't you all be happy that I still remember so much from my classes?" Her eyes fell upon Usagi and widened. "Why, Usagi, you're white as a sheet! Are you ill? Here, have some cider." Usagi stared at Rei as she picked up the cup and held it out to her.

"I-I … I think I need to use the restroom." Rei shot her an uncertain look.

"But you look so pale! Are you sure you-"

"Go into the nearest bedroom and you'll find one," Hiiro replied, not even looking up at her after his last heroic act. Rei's right eye ticked at being interrupted for the second time that evening, but she smoothed her countenance with little effort.

"Hiiro, you should ask somebody to walk her there. What if she faints on the way?"

He shot her an exasperated look. Rei raised an eyebrow.

"There are two men outside of the room. Ask one of them to take you there."

Without another word and trying her hardest to calm the furious blood pounding in her ears, the venom of hatred coursing through her veins, Usagi walked away, backing down from Rei's games, from Duo's adoration, from Hiiro's … _issues_.

…………………

"Hi, I'm Hiiro Yui also known as Mr. I-like-to-play-silly-mind-games. My goal in life is to make Usagi Tsukino absolutely miserable but every once in a while, I like to throw in a comment that makes her confused and makes her lose sleep at night. But I'm too rich and famous and dashingly handsome to admit that I have anything to do with Miss Sewage-under-the-bridge-Usagi."

"Why, hi, Hiiro, my name is Rei Hino also known as Miss I-like-to-play-_dangerous_-mind-games. _My_ goal in life is to make sure I always boss you, Duo, and Trowa around and that I make sure Usagi doesn't ever know if I'm a guardian angel or a thorn in her side. I'm not too rich and famous and gorgeous to associate with Usagi but I certainly am cruel enough to throw out the words 'she died' with a smile on my face. I think we'll get along _perfectly_. In fact, why don't we just fall in love with each other? Then we can both be even _richer_."

Usagi grinned sarcastically at herself in the mirror as she twisted her voice into a mockery of Hiiro's. "Rei, it is _such_ a pleasure to love somebody richer than I am." She stared at herself a moment longer with that ugly smirk on her face and sighed, her expression returning to despondency.

"Rei Hino, more than anything, I want you to know who I am but still remain my friend," she whispered under the soft light of the bulbs on top of the wall of mirrors. She held onto the edges of the decorative sink and leaned forward, gazing at herself blankly. "We are so different, Rei." There was no bitterness in her voice. "Why is it that you have everything? The looks, the money … what did you do in a past life that I didn't? What is it about you … that even when you're at your cruelest, I still want your affection?" She sighed and her chin dropped to her chest as she looked down.

"But my mother … dead. How much of what you say can I believe, Rei? And Hiiro's defending me … was it a fluke? No, of course not. Hiiro doesn't even know the meaning of _fluke_. But why then? Momentary insanity?" She stopped short and looked up to scowl at her reflection. "I hate your guts, Hiiro Yui. I mean, for goodness' sake! How many complexes can one person _ha-_"

"Miss, are you all right in there?"

Usagi jumped at the voice at the door and hastily replied, "Yes, I'll be right out." She walked over to the toilet, flushed it, waited a few seconds, and ran water over her hands. Then, taking a deep breath, she stepped out into brutal reality again.

…………………

"I think I should leave now. It's already nine and I'm not feeling too well so…" She smiled and reached for her purse.

"Oh, but you're not feeling well! Hiiro can take you home," Rei volunteered automatically. Hiiro scowled at her.

Usagi panicked. Not good, not good. Of all times, why did Rei choose _this_ moment to be kind and solicitous? "Well, I was thinking of walking home. I think I need the fresh air."

Duo looked puzzled. "You'd have to walk for over twenty miles, Usagi."

"Don't worry. I walk fast. I'll definitely get there by morning." She tried to look reassuring.

Rei frowned. "Don't be ridiculous. Hiiro will drive you." Another scowl courtesy of Hiiro to Rei, with love.

"Why don't we walk outside and go to the garage through the scenic route for your fresh air, and then we'll drive you home?" Duo offered.

"I am _not_ walking," Hiiro growled.

Rei glared at him and stomped on his foot. He responded by casually turning to return her glare. A moment passed before Hiiro narrowed his eyes and looked away. Rei stood. "So? Shall we go?"

Usagi bowed her head and prayed for mercy.

…………………

"For the love of Usagi, huh?" Duo joked, finally breaking the tense silence. "I can't believe all three of us are out here walking her to the cars just so Hiiro can drive her home. You realize the only one who can make something this ridiculous real is Rei, right, Usagi?"

_So don't get on her bad side. Ever_, she finished for him in her mind. A friendly reminder.

"So, Rei, what happened with that note you received Monday?" Usagi prompted, tempting fate, poking the spider. Rei shot her a surprised look; Hiiro didn't seem to have even heard her.

"Which one?" she replied coolly despite her obvious discomfort.

"The one that _I_ took care of."

From to the right of her on the wide garden path, Duo jabbed her in the ribs as if saying _Don't push it._

"I don't know what happened yet," Rei replied, looking askance at Hiiro who was still not paying them even a fleck of attention. "Hiiro…?" Her voice trailed off. "Have you … have you been to the fountain recently? Have you seen it?" Even in the darkness of the star-filled night, Usagi could note a certain light of tenderness in her eyes, a certain kind of adoration in the caress of her voice.

Perhaps Hiiro did too for he looked up abruptly and stopped walking altogether. Rei slowed and looked at him; Duo and Usagi paused and waited.

There was a long moment of silence, a comfortable silence in the warm, silky air of summer, a beautiful silence in the midst of flowers and vines, a ponderous silence under the gossamer blanket of night.

Her eyes were on him and his were on her; black-violet clashed with arctic blue, speaking volumes. It was almost as if she'd kissed him with her eyes.

And they walked on, a light smile on Rei's lips, a faraway look in Hiiro's eyes.

…………………

Sorry it took so long to update. xD; Hopefully I'll get more done this Labor Day weekend. Mmm. Maybe. I have chapter 8 done … meaning that it'll be posted next weekend. :3 And I have one scene of chapter 9 … meaning, if we cross our fingers, it'll be posted the weekend after. :DDD So! Proud of me? xD; Thanks for patience and good thoughts. Lol. Yours, Angel.

**A few hints… lol**

1. Watch how people react. O.O; Imagine it in your mind … what would you conclude from that kind of a reaction? Because I'm desperately trying to drop hints through those. xD;

2. Don't believe everything that you read. xD; The only truthful person in here, perhaps, is Usagi. _Don't trust rich people!_ Lol. Kidding. :3

3. Think of "what if" scenarios and tell me them. Lol. xDxD; Because they help. :3

4. And it does help to know Meteor Garden. xD; To a degree. :3 Both one and two. :DDD

5. Please do take some notice of the TITLES of chapters. :3

**Notes:**

1. "Sometimes what's right isn't as important as what's profitable": Trey Parker and Matt Stone, South Park, Prehistoric Ice Man, 1999

2. "blahblah…and his fate was sealed": influenced and derived from Crime and Punishment [Dostoevsky] – Razumikhin's thoughts on Donya/Dounia.

3. "That lying party will act just like a moth, circling closer and closer until it flies right into the deceived party's mouth. But I suppose it's better to wait. After all, exposing that person too early would be like giving him … moral support.": another something taken from Crime and Punishment – Porfiry to Raskolnikov.

**Usagi ****Asia**** Maxwell:** Is it still summer for you guys? O.O; ::stab x 438204832094830:: Lol. Usagi did not know her mother was dead. Is her mother dead? Well, is Rei lying? That's a harder question to answer. xD; It makes sense both ways – her father wouldn't tell Usagi because he's trying to protect her OR her mother actually isn't dead and Rei was just playing with her. O.O; The question is … how much does _Rei_ know about _Usagi_. And does she suspect. xD; Yes, I'm through with being enigmatic. xD;

**Sere Star:** Yes, it was drawn out. O.O; So was this one. xD; And the next one will be two. Chapter 9 is still too short to be able to tell. xD; But yeah. xD; Trowa, Trowa, Trowa … he'll receive more attention … sooner or later. xD; He's actually very important. :3 Yupyup.

**Lady ****Lydia** We'll see what Duo does … around Chapter 9. xD; And there will be more explanation about why exactly Rei hates her _so much_ … later on. xD; But just imagine … if you knew that your father had a child with somebody else and that child was out there somewhere. Well, you'll probably not be as angry as Rei is at that child [maybe more so at the father] but … Rei has transferred her anger from her father [who she can't do anything to] to that child and her mother [who she _can_ do something to]. But that doesn't make her any less angry at her father. xD; Again, more psychological explanation later. xD;

**AdorableAngel**: Lol. Yay. I love Rei. xD; Well, not so much stereotypical!Rei … more manga!Rei. xD; And I wanted people to get that feeling like … wow, I'm so happy that somebody like Rei is on "our" side. :3 But I also want them to question her intentions … because Rei seemed pretty evil this chapter in particular … O.O; I'm sorry about the long wait. ;-; Lol.

**Platinum Star:** Lol, I doubt that it's actually different. In fact, it's probably just more commercialized. xD;

**LiLSeReNiTiE** No! Don't be lost! Dangit. I hate it when I lose people. ;-;

**Airlady** Yeah, poor Usagi. xD; Never attacking. She'd better start soon. O.o; Or she will be trampled. xD;

**Usagi Shiratori:** Chapter 9, Chapter 9. I almost definitely kind of promise. That Duo will be explained further. xD;

**PadfootCC** Chapter 9! Lol. More on Duo, hopefully. And this chapter semi-explained her mother … BUT … we'll have to see about Rei's problems. xD;

**Dark Universe:** Oh, goodness. Until that day … o.o; It won't be pretty, I promise you. xD;

**...don't even know what to call myself**: Lol, do you think so? I … I can't say anything to either of those. xD; But please do keep guessing. :DDD

**Ceso**: Thankyouthankyou! :DDD Muahahaa. I catch attention. xD;

**LunarPrincess** Nono, by "freak," Duo was referring to Hiiro. As he did in … chapter 3 or 4. xD; Hiiro has so many names. xD; Not very flattering names, either. O.o; The get-together … more than anything, to stir the plot. xD; Because I needed them all together. xD; But in a sense, I suppose, Rei's wanting to find out about Hiiro is also part of it. xD;

**OtAkU** Lol, I'm glad you're _patiently_ waiting for more. xD;

**Jam:** Lol, thank you very much. But … never say "undoubtedly." Lol. :3

**Frosty:** O.O; Sorry to have made you wait so long…! ;-;

**Riru-chan** Lol, if she's already deserving so much pity … well … just imagine when/if Rei finds out. O.O; That'd be … pity-mania. xD;

**Black Aura-Sama:** Bai bai lettle bunneh? LOL. I loved that. xD; Oh, well, if you liked Rei's … attitude problems last chapter, you probably loved her this chapter. O.O; Rei was scary. Lol. And I absolutely can't battle your wit, so I won't. xD; I love you. xD; I love your reviews. xD; They're just … wow. O.O; ::muah:: xD;

**Sailor Grape:** O.O; You are sosososososo not the worst person in the world! In fact, if anything, you're one of the better few. Lol. If I had edited something, I would so not go back and review. xD; So please don't see it as an obligation! :3 Even if I would love you x10000000 if you did. xD; Kidding … kind of. :3 And I love how you notice things that I do unintentionally. xD; It makes me feel smart. :3 Lol. AND … I'm glad that you were suspicious enough to question the authenticity of Rei's information. xD; Muahah. Not exactly correct but … closer than just believing her. :3 And Copacetic. [why does it not let me un-cap it? O.o;] It amuses me. I learned it a while ago and bam, you just enforced it right there. xD; PLUS, it's supposed to be semi-slangey, right? Lol. Can you just imagine … "Yo, man. Sup? Everything copactic?" Lol. I can't wait to hear from you again. :3 And thank you muchmuchmuch for editing so quickly. xD;


	9. Brooklyn Bridge

Enjoy, enjoy. :3

Disclaimer: You know it, I know it, so let's just all have a moment of silence and repeat it to ourselves in our heads.

**Chapter 8: ****Brooklyn****Bridge******

After the virtual death of a father, the literal death of a mother, and the mental murder of Rei, Hiiro, and every other rich person in the world, Usagi decided that she had had enough of death and dying and to throw herself into her studies – social suicide.

And then came Rei.

Rei had always had great timing.

"You can't be serious!"

The dark-haired girl shrugged and looked vaguely annoyed. "Why wouldn't I be serious?"

"What if people find out?"

Rei rolled her eyes and flipped her hair over her shoulder. Usagi noticed several guys stopping short in the hallway to eye the silky wonder and drool. "Who's there to find out? And even if they do, the only person who can do anything about it is my father."

"I have a history test today!"

Rei looked utterly exasperated by now as if Usagi were offering the most ridiculous reasons to get out of doing a perfectly ordinary and even healthy thing. "So? Tell your teacher to postpone it."

She narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms, nodding sarcastically. "Oh, right, that's really going to w-"

And then that motion, that perfect motion that seemed to say so much, with that singular fluidity that was unique to him.

Trowa reached his hand out to Usagi. And that loud action drowned out Rei's fed up voice, Usagi's desperate protests, with ringing silence. There seemed to be a certain look on his face – not a pleading one – but one that asked for her company gently. It was so simple but powerful an action that Rei started and almost looked proud.

"So where are we going?" Usagi smiled weakly.

…………………

It was utterly ridiculous! Ridiculous! When normal people skip, they go to the arcade or … or the nearest Sonic but no! When Rei, Hiiro, Duo, and Trowa skip, they skip with _style_. They hop on a private jet and fly over to New York City.

Because she needed new shoes, Rei explained.

"We'll stop by Michael's and have a brief lunch. Then maybe a bit of walking around, a bit of bar-hopping … and we'll be home before midnight." Rei beamed. Usagi blanched.

"What about my job?" she demanded.

Rei blinked as if she'd expected lavish thanking instead of a panicked snap. "Oh, don't worry. I'll pay you."

Usagi shook her head. "No, what if I _lose_ my job?"

"Ask for it back," she snapped. "Or … I'll give you a weekly allowance or something." Rei looked at her as if she were the stupidest thing alive. "Now, does anybody else have a complaint?"

"I don't want to go to Michael's," Hiiro muttered. "Too much publicity."

Rei looked like she was going to scream. "Right, we'll go to a gay bar then."

Duo paled dramatically. "No way. I am not g-"

"_I was just kidding_!"

The braided boy put his hands in front of him defensively and backed away. "All right, all right. I get it."

"No Michael's," Hiiro reminded her crossly.

"Okay, fine," she snapped again. Then, speaking to the driver of the limousine, she ordered, "To Michael's."

…………………

At Michael's, the media elite watched each other watching each other.

In fact, there was never a boring lunch at Michael's, no matter how much Hiiro groaned and griped.

It was because you're part of every other conversation in the place -- everybody who you knew or wanted to know was sharing secrets and confidences just a few feet away. In comparison, restaurants where it was just you and your lunch date, forced to entertain each other, seemed hard to justify.

Every once in a while, there would be a gossip-worthy luncheon companion who'd leaned over and, in a stagey way, confide something to his lunch date. And wasn't this ridiculous, because everyone knew that it was impossible to hear anything going on at any other table at Michael's -- so the only reason you would try to hide what you were saying was so that everyone would _know_ you were trying to hide what you were saying.

Once they'd stepped through the door on 55th Street, in a building once owned by the Rockefellers, Michael himself, in a new floppy cut, greeted the four royals warmly, glancing curiously at Usagi as if inquiring why the Chihuahua was walking around with the poodles. One of the oddly nurturing front desk people shot them a "You look great today" stare. Then, from the top of the few steps leading down into the spacious dining room with good art and many flowers, they saw everybody else in the media business who wanted to be seen.

And there they were, in overly priced jeans, casual cashmere sweaters, so nonchalant in a room of glitter, gloss, and sequined dresses. Rei didn't seem to notice that the editor of _Vogue_ sat at the table right next to theirs but Duo kindly pointed her out to Usagi.

They were making a statement – even uncultured Usagi could tell – they were setting a trend for the crowd of ultra-urbanites who all pretended to eat and chat with their dates while watching everybody else in the room. The seeming lack of respect for the flashiness of Michael's was tolerated, appreciated even. The casual wear was noted, and today's rebellious teens were chastised again in everybody's minds.

Today's _very rich_ rebellious teens for whom all the rules seemed to bend, Usagi corrected herself.

Some people say Michael's was _so_ high school. But in actuality, it was perhaps the opposite. There was nothing chaotic or anarchic or gratuitous at Michael's. Everything was stylized, choreographed, orderly, courtly, elegant.

They were situated at table No. 5. It was _their_ table, apparently. As if Rei, Hiiro, Duo, and Trowa actually flew in to New York more than a couple of times a year. Right.

But despite their frequent absence, _they had a table_.

A very good table, in fact, very near the front of the room. From it, Usagi could see the entryway and table No. 1 in the bay where Mick Jagger was drumming his fingers.

The joke was that all these media bigs showed up for lunch and pretended everything was just fine and still supporting those incredibly expensive meals, while waiting for the person at the next table to break down in tears – at any given moment, everyone knew who would likely be crying next.

In other establishments like this -- the Four Seasons, for instance – there was a certain sort of pretense. People in a gated community pretended that they lived the lives of people outside the gated community, or pretended the gated area was normal life.

But Michael's wasn't like that. Everybody was open about being on the inside. It was like a prison yard. Usagi shuddered and tried to smile at Duo's bad joke.

Every conversation around her was very analytic, very smart, very precise about who was falling from what height and how fast -- about what forces were about to take what person apart. Yammering, yammering, yammering on those cute little cell phones.

It was all deconstruction. **1**

And then there was Rei and Trowa, sitting there so calmly, chatting agreeably, ignoring the pairs of ears around them perked to catch their words, to report them into those cell phones.

Hiiro kept on looking gloomy and irritable. Usagi hazarded a guess that he despised crowds and affectation.

Duo was the only one genuinely attempting a conversation with her.

"Isn't this overkill?"

Duo shrugged. "It's Michael's. Anything goes."

"You sound experienced," she sighed and smiled a bit, carefully swirling her some-kind-of-exotic-fruit drink that she herself had insisted on paying.

He smiled back. "More or less. Not as much as Hiiro, of course."

Hiiro looked up peevishly upon hearing his name.

She mustered a smile for him, too.

"Do you appreciate this? Do you envy this?" He broke the short silence smoothly, voice a bit low and generally miserable. He reminded her of a sulking five-year-old, and she smiled at the thought. His eyes narrowed. "Don't mock me. If you've been through this kind of scene every other day of your life, you wouldn't like it, either." His face twisted sarcastically. "But you haven't, have you?"

"You'd be surprised," she retorted but stopped when Duo shot her a searing look of warning. "But I wasn't mocking you. I find this kind of place interesting because I haven't experienced it before but I don't think I would _choose_ to come here."

He nodded and seemed to appreciate her answer before reaching up to rub his temples and sipping his latte. "I'd rather be in class than here. I wish we'd gone to a bar instead." He shot Rei an annoyed look but Usagi could swear that it didn't look as annoyed as if could have been.

"We can still leave," Duo offered.

Hiiro looked displeased at his suggestion and seemed ready to turn it down just because Duo had suggested it but checked himself. "All right. We'll leave."

"Leave?" Rei's right eyebrow was raised inquiringly, almost threateningly. Trowa's eyes met Usagi's for a brief moment and he pursed his lips gently as if trying to hold back a rebuke.

"Leave," Hiiro replied, mouth curling at the sight of a challenge.

A moment passed as Rei and Hiiro commenced another staring contest; they seemed to be communicating in such a way that only Trowa could understand.

"Usagi, you haven't seen much of New York, have you?" the tall brunette asked suddenly, drawing Rei's attention away from making menacing faces at Hiiro.

She started. "No … I've never been here before," she fibbed, smiling.

Trowa looked pleased. "Why don't Hiiro and Duo take you on a tour of the city?" He was smiling at her in that calm, prepossessed way of his.

Rei seemed to brighten. "That's a great idea!" Then, sternly, she turned to Hiiro and Duo. "Take good care of her or I'll break two legs and an arm when you get back," she admonished, a smile tugging at her lips.

Usagi suppressed a grin and Rei shot her a good-naturedly amused look.

Was this the Rei who'd just been grousing at her for being stupid? Was this the Rei who'd been baiting her the evening before?

She saw Hiiro incline his head slightly in thanks to Trowa before turning back and shooting her a casual glare as though he'd just remembered that though he did get to leave the room of media moguls, he'd have to take her with him. There was disgust written on his face in neon orange.

"Where do you want to start?" he managed, drawling.

Duo jumped in before Usagi could muster an answer. "We should start at The World Bar, walk along Madison Avenue a bit, check out the Stork Club, look at a few art exhibitions, go to Central Park, sample a bit of Saks, maybe go to the Empire State Building, Brooklyn Bridge, Canal Street, Times Square, Broadway-"

"We're staying here for a day, not half a year," Hiiro snapped.

Duo sighed and furrowed his brow. "Okay, let's just go to The World Bar and we'll start from there."

"A bar?" Usagi inquired, making a face at Duo, her posture reeking of skepticism.

"Don't worry. It's very nice there," he reassured, grinning, before grabbing her by the hand and pulling her along to catch up with Hiiro who'd already walked up and to the door.

"Have fun," Rei called after them.

…………………

"Very nice," as Duo had delicately put it certainly didn't come anywhere close to describing The World Bar.

Located at 845 United Nations Plaza (Midtown East/Murray Hill) inside the Trump World Tower, The World Bar was an entirely different world. Everything from the back-lit marble bar to the petrified-wood tables exuded a sense of luxury, not to mention of Trump.

"It was named a few years back as the best bar for drinking obscenely-priced cocktails," Duo informed her.

"Oh, really?" she managed.

"Yeah. You'll love it. We'll have three World Cocktails." Duo leaned back in his seat and sighed. "So tell us about yourself, Usagi."

Hiiro shot her a look that clearly said 'Please don't.'

"There's not much to tell." She laughed a little but it sounded forced even to her.

"We're both jaded rich kids. Anything you have to say will be interesting, I'm sure." Sarcasm coated Hiiro's words so completely that Usagi was almost taken aback.

Did he hate her that much?

"Well, I-"

"Here it is," Hiiro interrupted, clearly not interested in what she had to say. Usagi bristled but eyed the server curiously as he started mixing their drinks on a silver tray.

"It's a combination of Remy XO, Pineau des Charentes, Veuve Clicquot, and various other ingredients," Duo started as Hiiro did what he did best – look bored. **2**

Usagi's eyes widened as the server finished the first drink and crowned it with … "Is that…?"

"23-karat liquid gold," Hiiro supplied, smirking faintly at her. "Impressed?"

"Very," she admitted. He looked startled at her lack of a fight.

They drank in silence, Duo avoiding her eyes and Hiiro lost in space again, probably daydreaming about Rei. Usagi sighed and decided that even though there was a slick pool of liquid gold in her drink and even though Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston were sitting at a diagonal from them, she wanted to be anywhere but here.

…………………

"I've never been here before," she smiled, standing in the pedestrian lane, looking around curiously as the slight breeze blew through her hair.

"Never? Brooklyn Bridge? It's a hallmark." Duo looked incredulous but amused. "Sometimes it's nice up here and sometimes the air is just … _thick_ with pollution."

"A lot of people jump off of this bridge," Hiiro murmured, shooting a significant glance at Duo who scowled.

"Hey, I don't want to be here with you either, buddy. But you wanted to leave Michael's, right? So enjoy it."

Hiiro glowered at him. "I can't tolerate you," he clipped and started to walk away. Duo grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him around. Hiiro caught his wrist and held it still. Their faces were inches away, their hair wild, and their lips parted, gasping slightly. **3**

"No, Your Majesty, allow _me_," Duo said softly before jerking his arm out of Hiiro's grip and storming off.

"Duo! Wait!" she cried and started to run after him but Hiiro grabbed her arm. She looked back at him with a mixture of fear and dislike. His face was blank, perfect, and his hold was painful.

"Don't go."

And those two words, just like Trowa's silent gesture, rooted her to the spot. She stopped and turned around completely; the wind played with her hair and his.

He let go of her abruptly and looked away.

"What're you doing? That was your _brother_!"

It was as if he hadn't heard her. And then, in a sudden movement that made her heart lurch, he grabbed her hand and kissed it. Usagi fell back a step and he let go, looking a bit abashed and a bit revolted.

"Duo's not my brother any more than you are Rei's sister." He turned back to lean on the ledge of the bridge. Usagi's eyes widened at his words but he didn't seem to realize what he'd just implied.

"My parents adopted Duo from an orphanage run by a priest. They were feeling particularly magnanimous at that point in time." He smiled to himself mockingly, still looking off to the distance at the lines of traffic underneath them. "It was because my father was half a step away from losing half of his stock holdings to Mr. Hino. They thought that since he was saved, they would perform a good deed and adopt a child." Usagi eyed his profile with distrust.

"But Duo has an easy charisma about him. I'm sure you've noticed." He glanced at her briefly as if daring her to agree. "And my parents fell in love with him. The household staff fell in love with him. But I was so much more than him," his voice was a growl by now and his hands gripped the ledge with tenacious ferocity. "I was smarter, faster, more urbane, more athletic, more cultured, more _everything._"

A few seconds – a whole minute of silence passed as Usagi studied his defined profile. His eyes were narrowed, peering into the distance, his posture tense as if ready to fight, his lips pursed, his jaw set, his eyebrows netted.

Then, with the voice of a lonesome child, he asked, "So why did he get everything?" Usagi jumped a little as the possible idea of Hiiro being _hurt_ and _crying_ struck her. It seemed so _improper_ that she almost felt queasy. "Whatever he wanted, he got. He got my parents, my servants, my friends … Rei."

And there was that name again. Rei. Rei Rei Rei Rei Rei. Again and again, she will always be chained to Rei. They will _all_ always be chained to Rei. Because Rei was the sun and they must all orbit around her.

A cruel smile twisted Hiiro's well-defined features as he turned to face her. "And now he wants you." He leaned in closer as if he were a six-year-old confiding to her that he couldn't touch her because all girls had cooties. Whispering, he smiled, "But he's not going to get you."

She jerked back before he could come any closer and stared at him with loathing evident in her eyes, in her posture. "I'm not going to be another battleground between the two of you. And … and," she fought to catch her breath, "that was the most _stupid_ story I've ever heard! And you're the biggest pig that has ever lived!"

Panic fought to take control as instead of becoming angry, an amused look took over Hiiro's face and he took another step closer as if to catch and restrain her.

But then Hiiro leaned back a bit and gained a cool, business-like air. "Date me." There was so much confidence in those two words that Usagi felt almost compelled to obey. "I'll pay for everything, I'll give you however many credit cards you want, however many cars you want. You can live in my house, you can equal Rei in social rank. All you have to do is…" He smiled faintly and held his hand out to her.

But she darted away. And ran. To Michael's, to Saks, to _China_ – anywhere that Hiiro Yui could never reach.

…………………

Tired. Do you see the turning point? The turning point! Haha … quarter of the way there. xD; And when will the next one be? And the next? The next? :3 I'm tired. I'm not thinking straight. Excuse me. xD; Good night. :3 And please support Ashika in her continuation of Cross My Heart in my stead. :3. Good night, good night. Next chapter will be up next weekend if Grape-ch-ch-chan gets it to me before then. :3 I'm hyper. Harhar. Yours, Angel.

Notes:

1. The spiel on Michael's: Information taken from 

2. The World Bar and its cocktails: Information taken from the same place as .

3. Hiiro and Duo's almost fight: Does it not make you think of shounen-ai? :O Lol.

...don't even know what to call myself: Haha, high school. Well, I guess I'd say … I know what you mean. O.o; The only chapter that I liked was the one right after I came back from vacation. xD; After reading loads of Jane Austen and having it rub off. xD; Good luck with school! Even if you might not need it. :3

Jam: Meow. You remind me of somebody I know. No, Duo is not Usagi's half brother. O.o; Mr. Hino is not that … prolific. xD;

Actually … I give up. I really need to sleep. Just … I'll finish these next chapter. :3 But … I love you all, I stalk you all, I spend all my non-school hours of the day reading over your reviews again and again and again and again and again and again and … yes. xD; Because I'm that obsessed. Harharharharhar. I'm just kidding, you know. Lol. But I do love you. :3 And you'd better love me back. :3 Or it's, as Black Aura-Sama phrases it … "baibai, lettle bunneh." :3 Night.


	10. Angel in White

**Disclaimer: **.

A more introspective, less action-y chapter. :3

Great big handfuls of thanks to **Sailor Grape!!**Whom I have not thanked for the last two chapters. :O ::slaps self:: --; But she's an awesome editor…! :3 And she deserves to be paid…! …ahaha … but not by me. xD; Kidding. 3

Enjoy … _please_! Lol.

**Chapter 9: Angel in White**

The wind riffled through his hair as he frowned and attempted to come to terms with what had just happened, leaning on the side of the bridge, looking into the distance.

He was Hiiro _Yui_. And Duo was Duo _Maxwell_. There was about a seventy billion dollars difference in property and stocks between the two surnames.

But Usagi ran away from him.

No, Usagi ran away from seventy billion dollars. After all, who would ever run away from him?

He couldn't comprehend that. He couldn't comprehend _her_.

Even a week earlier, when he was pondering his next move, Hiiro had assumed that _his_ willingness to take _her_ in was the only obstacle in his way and he had come with the utmost confidence in her agreement.

After all … seventy billion dollars! Even he would hesitate and think, no matter what he had to do in exchange for it.

But she had said no so easily, so _loudly_ in her actions, so _painfully clearly_ that there was no mistake, there was no pause, there was no consideration, just – no. Never. Go jump off a cliff, Mr. Seventy-billon-dollars.

He started as it began to drizzle, the gentle mist dampening the air but not clearing it of his sourness.

Hiiro Yui had lost, yet again, to Duo Maxwell – had offered _so much_ and been told off.

But he wasn't through yet. Oh no, not yet. Because there were yet _so many ways_ that he could make that seventy billion dollars _so much more_ convincing for a little nothing like Usagi Tsukino.

And until then, consolation came slowly, softly, like the mist in the air.

…………………

There was something about drizzle that was terribly devastating to her. It was always as if the weather were oscillating like an uxorious man, teasing like a décolleté woman.

And if that wasn't bad enough, she was without cash, stuck in a place where cash equaled service and service equaled maybe-finding-Rei-and-getting-back-to-LA-before-next-week. Usagi sighed and sat down on the nearest bench. Brooklyn Heights Promenade while it was drizzling was not particularly glamorous. Though supposedly the eighth marvel of the modern world when lumped together with Brooklyn Bridge, standing above the Brooklyn-Queens expressway and perfectly placed for marveling at the view of Lower Manhattan, the East River, and Brooklyn Bridge, those glowing words seemed to only hold true on clear days.

After all, only on a clear day can you see almost forever, see the setting sun, see the golden sunshine glinting off the metal skyscrapers. It was one of Brooklyn's prettiest and most historic districts and yet, in the grayness and the mist, it was far from enchanting, far from picture-perfect.

Usagi leaned back and looked up at the gray afternoon sky, feeling the slight drops of rain on her bare arms.

It seemed as if it'd just hit her, though she was sure she'd already realized it in the back of her mind, in her subconscious, her nightmares.

But only with the drizzle did the gold gloss of all her ideals seem to wash away, succumbing to a tide of cynicism, of realism. Only with the drizzle did the vivid colors of her dedicated imagination fade away into the dreary grays and blacks of the cloth from which sorrow was made.

Perhaps she was wrong to want the affection of Rei? At times, she almost found herself wondering if Rei ever _had_ any affection to give, especially for someone like her. But with Rei, there were so many contradictions, so many mysteries, anomalies – was she kind? was she truthful? _did she know_?

And with Rei came so many other things, her entire entourage of the rich and the famous, the twenty-passenger limousines, the private jets, the school day trips to places across the nation…

And what of Duo? Of Trowa, of Hiiro? Well, she couldn't care less if Hiiro even glanced at her – in fact, she preferred that he didn't, but what of the others? What did they want? Trowa, who was so enigmatic but seemed to be languidly watching her like a sleek predator ready to pounce, and Duo, holding a knife to her throat while smiling so sweetly, helping so earnestly.

So where is Usagi Tsukino? The Usagi Tsukino who is a caricature of Usagi Hino? The Usagi Tsukino who murdered Usagi Hino and replaced her with a shy, accommodating piece of nothing?

Was Usagi Tsukino the lone rabbit standing in the field, praying to grow into a panther? Praying but never becoming while the panthers around her prowled, slavering, waiting, hiding.

"Usagi?"

She jumped and looked up. Violet blue eyes stared right at her, startled but piercing, tearing, rendering.

"Usagi, are you all r- what's wrong? D-don't cry!"

She didn't know what came over her but she ran to him. Just ran, didn't think, the rabbit to the panther with its claws unsheathed. And she hugged him, cried, and savored the sanctity of his arms as he just stood, holding, waiting, in the mist, in the rain, in the grayness.

…………………

Rei had told him over the cell phone to take Usagi to the airport, to a private terminal.

So there he was, hugging her sleeping body to him, waiting for an unoccupied taxi, trying his hardest to shield her from the drizzle-turned-to-rain. He hollered for the cab and it stopped.

"La Guardia, please." The driver grunted, and they were off.

It was hard not to think about the girl next to him, he had to admit. After all, she was _the _girl, _that _girl, _Usagi Hino_.

She was that angel in white who'd deigned to step into his world years ago when their roles were so very different, scaring away the shadows of poverty, of self-pity, self-hatred. And she was that seraph who took his hands as a six-year-old and told him that she was there for him, always. Always.

A powerful word of so much meaning.

Had he changed so much that she couldn't even recognize him? Was he so jaded now? So gilded? Did she not have the faintest recollection of a scraggly boy, an orphan, carrying her home when she fell asleep waiting for him?

Could she not remember what she had whispered to that boy on the way home, half-asleep, her breath tickling his ear? Could she not recall those four, immortal words filled with so much childish simplicity and naiveté?

He glanced over and started – she was crying, whimpering in her sleep, tears dotting her cheeks. Gently, without hesitation, he leaned over and pressed his lips to each drop, savoring the salty taste, relishing in their intimacy, lost in those four words echoing in his mind.

He pulled away a little and studied her features; there was a striking resemblance between her and her six-year-old self, so striking that he felt as if he'd just noticed it, just partook in that childlike beauty. The questions that had been nagging him since that angel in white disappeared came again, haunting, overshadowing, large.

Unanswered.

Why had she left? Why was it that he waited for her but she never came back? Waited and waited in the pouring rain, through the night, watching and shivering until he couldn't tell where the tears ended and the rain began.

Why, why, _why hadn't she told him_? Was he so parochial a figure in her life? Was he the dandelion under that angel in white's foot?

She sighed in her sleep and a small frown settled over her features, but she'd stopped crying.

And those four words that she'd whispered came again, pounding heavily on the doors of his recollection, thundering in his ears, booming to the beat of his heart.

_I love you, Duo_.

He pulled away and brushed a strand of hair out of her face.

Always.

…………………

He stared out at the skyline across Victoria Harbor and rubbed a hand over his face. It was going to be another all-nighter.

More than anything, it was times like these that he worried and ruminated and felt like an utter failure.

He hadn't been home in almost a year. He hadn't genuinely spent time at home for almost three years. He hadn't given even a day of attention to his wife, Rei, Usagi – anybody – in almost five years.

Because this whole time, he was lost in an one-sided love affair with his career, with his success, with his ego.

He hadn't celebrated a birthday with Rei, with Usagi in six years. Six years! How old were they now? Sixteen? Seventeen? Of course he'd seen pictures of them. Kaidou brought him those and he suffered just as acutely from the warm feeling pooling in his heart as most fathers do.

But with that warm feeling was a cold, metallic, heavy taste in his mouth – the taste of regret, guilt, and so much more.

He knew that Rei would despise Usagi, knew that Rei would despise Usagi's mother – he was still enough of a father to understand that much about Rei – but he had never figured out just how much. How much? Enough to kill? How much more must he pay for that illicit night?

The business machine in him told him that for there to be success, marginal cost must equal marginal benefit.

Was the marginal cost of that night too much? Too heavy on his tired, tired heart?

For each business banquet in the last five years, he'd taken a different woman and he was certain that Rei hated each and every one of them with the same amount of fervor even though nothing happened. He could imagine Rei eyeing him accusingly, hardly, with those exotic eyes of her mother's. And he could see Usagi looking at him softly, sadly, with his own eyes, crying, crying.

Much too heavy. Much, much too heavy.

The Victoria Harbor skyline glared back at him, bright, industrious, gently reflected in the water. So simple, so magnificent, so joyous.

And it was times like these that he, though an atheist, sincerely prayed. For forgiveness, for mercy, for resurrection.

…………………

Hiiro was the first thing he ran into while heading for the terminal.

"Are we boarding yet?" he asked mutedly, tired.

His brother strolled casually up to him and slowed to a stop, silent, blank. "You can if you want," he finally replied, the reserved, contained look still adorning his features. He tilted his head slightly and eyed Duo, then looked down at the sleeping Usagi in his arms. His lips pressed together into an angry, straight line and his fists clenched.

When Hiiro spoke again, his voice sounded a bit strangled, "Where did you find her?"

Duo narrowed his eyes. "Brooklyn Heights. I thought she was supposed to be with you. She could have … you could have … so many things could have happened because of you!" He was almost afraid that he was going to crush the girl in his arms with his anger.

Hiiro looked bored and a bit annoyed; he looked aside as if ignoring him. "I can take her onto the plane," he spoke lightly, turning back and meeting Duo's irate gaze head-on.

"No."

Just that. Another short, simple no.

"I _know_ what you want, Hiiro Yui," he almost spat. "I know that you think because she is _so_ below you in rank and wealth she'll see your attention as a _gift_ and she'll view you as a _savior_. You think that she'll be so grateful for even your slightest glance. You think she'll spend the rest of her life pining away for you. Because, let me tell you, Hiiro Yui, you've never wanted love from anybody. All you want is hero worship." Hiiro looked ready to interject but Duo plowed onwards. "But let me wake you up and show you reality, Hiiro. Usagi is not like that. She doesn't need your help, and she is not as ordinary as you think she is. And if you need proof, all you have to do is think back to _that particular incident_, Your _Majesty_."

"Liar," he managed through clenched teeth, his entire figure tense, indignant, bristling. But even before half a minute had passed, Hiiro calmed down, his countenance smoothing, his languidness returning. "You have missed a very important point, _Rat. You_ love her, and your love for her is not as light and easily thrown off as the desire for hero worship. But you'll see. She'll want _me_. And then all you can do is go whine about the difference between love and hero worship."

Then, with scandalous audacity, he moved to Duo, bent down, and kissed the girl in his arms. Duo shoved him aside and headed for the jet.

"You'll see! She'll love me by the end of this week. And then where will you be?"

Duo didn't turn but replied, "Don't be cocky."

…………………

_It was there. It was there_, he told himself repeatedly. Was it there? What would he do if it hadn't been there? How could he be so sure that it had been there?

Trowa paused for a moment before walking into the terminal. Hiiro was still there, standing and staring into space.

Was it there?

Yes. He was sure. Positive.

"Hiiro."

The addressee's shoulders tensed. "Trowa." He seemed relieved.

"That was … an interesting scene. Aren't you glad there are so few people here this late?" He almost smiled. Hiiro looked a little embarrassed.

"You saw that."

"Yes." The coolness was still there, the frost was still present in his intonation as he stepped closer to Hiiro. "And I think that you and I both know that Duo was wrong."

Hiiro hesitated and seemed to consider backing away a step but chose to stand his ground. "Wrong about what?" There was a measure of uncertainty and tentativeness in his tone that Trowa was sure he didn't hear often.

"Wrong about your desire for hero worship." Trowa smiled collectedly. "It was there. A sense of longing. You genuinely want this girl to like you. Because she was the first to defy you, not once, not even twice, but three times. She poured water on you, she punched you, and she rejected you today, didn't she, Hiiro? She rejected your money, she rejected your person, she rejected everything about you, didn't she, Hiiro?"

There was alarm written all over Hiiro's face. "How do you know that?"

Trowa smiled again. "A secret." He shifted and took yet another step closer. This time, Hiiro fell back. "And because of that, she is a challenge, and you'd always had a taste for overcoming challenges, Hiiro."

He was silent.

"What I can't figure out is … whether or not you still love Rei." Trowa paused to frown delicately. "Would you explain it to me, Hiiro?"

"Explain? I-"

A crafty look stole over Trowa's face. "But perhaps … but perhaps you do still love Rei but not Rei as she is. You still love Rei for what you wish her to be, more gentle, more kind – is that it? And you see those qualities in Usagi? But at the same time, you are attracted to the familiarity of Rei? You're attracted to the sameness of Rei? Her similarity in status, wealth, beauty?" Trowa broke out in light laughter and looked satisfied. "You're a very interesting psychological case, Hiiro." He glanced at his watch. "I think we should be boarding now. I wonder where Rei is…"

And with that he headed toward the plane also.

Hiiro stared after him, watching that cobra in the grass glide away.

………………...........

Her heart was beating at her throat and pounding between her ears.

She had planned to step out when, instead, Trowa had. That was the second shock of the day after the brotherly spat between Duo and Hiiro. And Trowa's thorough analysis of Hiiro completed the third shock of the day.

Hiiro still loved her? But he didn't love her exactly? So he also loved Usagi?

Was Hiiro that messed up?

And was love too strong a word?

She had already made her decision. A year ago.

So all this time, she was not worried about whether or not she still had feelings for him but rather whether or not he did for her.

Because she had already made that decision. She had already chosen Duo and that moment was etched in time. Always.

And now she was completely through with both of them. No more brotherly favoritism – it was too much work.

But she wanted Usagi to be with Hiiro _so much_. She wanted her to change him, to transform him into a better person.

Because Rei Hino, as talented and moneyed as she was, was utterly incapable of changing Hiiro for the better, had failed in her attempt and so turned to Duo for consolation.

Because, and she could admit this to herself, she was not a good enough person. She was not rooted enough in good morals to change Hiiro.

But Usagi was an angel, an absolute angel, so much of one that Rei regretted getting angry at her support of _that child's_ mother, regretted her instant suspicion.

And where she, Duo, Trowa – everybody – had failed, that angel in white will succeed.

Always.

…………………

Always, always, always…! :3 Ah, I should've titled the chapter Always. O.o; But I wanted to get the angel in white idea across too…! It's a dilemma. --; Ahh, don't you just love Trowa? :3 And Duo? And Mr. Hino? Lol … and absolutely hatehatehate HIIRO YUI?! P Ahaha. I love all of them right now … I'm very attached right now. O.o; That'd be why nothing bad has happened yet. Lol. Must detach myself by that point. ::mental note:: I liked this chapter while writing it and after having written it but after reading through it … I was as ecstatically in love. O.o; _Why_?! Becauseitsuckeddangit. Lol. Love you all much and thanks for reading. :3 Yours, Angel in White xD;.

**LunarPrincess**: O.O; I'm blushing, I'm blushing…! xD; I can't say I agree but … hrmm … tell me more. :3 ::sigh:: You bring up a troublesome point … Usagi has been particularly passive. O.o; _Help!_ Lol. I suppose you could interpret it in a favorable light … she's like a child in a world of adults, unable to take action but really…! Usagi is rather boring me. xD; ::makes mental note to do something about it soon:: And Quatre, Wufei, co are still are long way off. xD; Sorry…! O.o;

**Kobayashi Eiko:** Lol, yesyes I think Hiiro is OOC. O.o; Well, I tried to keep him asocial and stubborn and temperamental but … I couldn't keep the morbid side of him. O.o; Not to a great extent at least … and I couldn't quite keep the insane part of him … I mean, aside from spontaneously kissing a girl's hand and looking revolted afterwards. xD; Andand … lesse … I feel like I'm defending myself. O.O; I'm really not! Lol. I'm just assessing because your point scares/worries me. Lol. I imagine alcohol would fit with Hiiro … I mean he doesn't really … value his life that much … so I can imagine him taking in almost any type of addictive substance. xD; Poor Hiiro. I guess the real Hiiro wouldn't _hate_ necessarily. I mean, in Hiiro's familiar situation, I don't think the an in-character would hate Duo … and I don't think an in-character Hiiro would have been drenched/punched by Usagi. O.O; Certainly not. And if even one of those events occurred, Hiiro would be taking decisive and retaliatory action … to an extreme. xD; I can imagine Hiiro's skipping because he's already ahead … I can't necessarily imagine his bending to Rei's will or being manipulated so easily by Trowa but … well … I like my Trowas manipulative. xD; And I like my Reis perfect. :3 Andand … I'm talking to much. Excuse me! xD; Quatre is … not on the same continent. Hahahah. He will appear around Ch. 20-25 I forgot. O.o; Lol and so you think Usagi is figureless to an extreme? xD; Thanks for your good points :3 that sound strange…

**Happycat** O.O; You remind me of somebody I know. xD; It's a small world after all. --; I really don't think this is anywhere close to the best fic on the net. O.o; But even though I can't be deluded…I can still feel all warm and bubbly inside. xD;

**Sere Star:** Ack! Nononononono! Hiiro knows nothing about the Rei/Usa relationship…! O.o; ::erases that thought from Sere Star's mind:: :3

**Platinum Star:** …! You're among the few that have pointed out the possibility of a Usagi/Duo. :D Hrmmm … maybe? xD; Lol, I think this chapter basically said _yesyesit'satriangle_…! :3 But … we shall see, hrmm? xD;

**La Sylphide:** Lol. Learning new things about wine and other addictive substances? xD; I feel like such a bad influence. --; I'm interested in foreign authors in general. Lol. Not that into Hemingway and the "one true sentence" though … The Old Man and the Sea was sad in the end. O.o; It made me weepy. Lol. Weepy. Never used that word before. O.o;

**SailorKagome**: Thankyouthankyou. :3

**Airlady** Hrmm … was it ever explained to Rei? O.o; Poor Usagi. Being alone in New York is very scary business. O.o;

**Frosty:** Thank you! :D

**PadfootCC** Lol I concur. --; But I hope to delve more into it…! Like … think of it this weigh: when Hiiro weighs the importance of getting revenge against Duo against getting revenge against Usagi, he considers the latter more important. Further, _he_ thinks or has convinced himself that his proposal to Usagi was simply a business venture, a business contract with nothing else attached – my assets for your assets. O.o; I just need to insert that in the story somewhere… --;

**Arella**** Hallo: :**3! Thank you! I understand and agree with you though … sometimes it's easy to get caught up in creating conflict so much that "one" sounds stuffy. O.o; neglects the resolution. O.o; That happens to me … more frequently than I'd like it to. xD; But thank _you. _:3

**Liquid Ice:** Meteor Garden…! ;-; It's been a while since I'd last seen it … I feel like I'm losing motivation. Lol. And inspiration, I guess. xD; You've seen it? O.O; So can you anticipate my plot movements? :3 Do tell. :DDD Because … I'll have to kill you if you know to much. xD; Kidding. Thank you though. :3 Andand … I am eagerly awaiting the posting of After. :3 ::fawns over it:: xD;

**Dark Universe: ::sigh**:: I'll explain, I'll explain…! Lol. Refer to PadfootCC's reply. xD; About it being unexpected … and I'll mention it sometime in the story. O.o; feels like a failure. xD; And I also want Hiiro's money. O.o; I want a lot of things. Lol. ::sigh:: I'm so jealous. xD;

**Sunshine Fia:** Lol, I have a thing about reviewing too. O.O; Too much effort. xD; The Trowa Usagi relationship is … a mystery? Lol. I hope so. --; Hiiro was out of character in that venture --; Though I hope to redeem myself by explaining. xD; Refer to PadfootCC's reply. can you feel the laziness? xD; And I'll explain in the story itself as well. :3 Aside from that … not telling. :3

**Zanrui** Health problems? :O Are you okay? O.O; But … urk … all the NYC information was from my research on another fic. Lol. That … might or might not be posted. --; You're the first to tell me that Hiiro is in character! :D! I love you so. xD; Great minds think alike, after all, hrmm? :3 Lol. Quatre will show up half-way. O.o; But half way is a long way off. xD; I can only attempt to console you by saying his role will be significant. O.o; And he will be portrayed in such a way that … he will attract … fangirls. Lol. xD; Well, depends on my ability. --;

**AdorableAngel**: O.O; I want to see what you're seeing about where I'm going with this…! Lol. Such atrocious grammar. --; PSAT maniac at the moment. --; I love New York. :3 In theory only though, I suppose. xD;

**...don't even know what to call myself:** Yesyes, goodgood about Duo. :3 I hope everybody caught on to that. O.o; I wanted to just leave it hanging. :3 Lol. And I also want Duo to "kick Hiiro's bum" xD; But not yet, not yet … pending. :3 Trowa is … so smart. Lol. And sly. And manipulative. :3 I love him that way. xD;

**Koldy** O.O; kol to you too. :3 Thank you

**Moon Mage Goddess**: Lol, thank you :D

**Datajana** Lol, at the moment, Hiiro doesn't think that he's sincere. :3 And … to straighten another point … Hiiro has no hard feelings against Rei – or so we're led to believe – and instead chooses to take his anger out on _Duo_ though Rei's choice of Duo over him was probably more _Rei's _fault … which leads us to believe that Hiiro still loves Rei. O.O; But are we right? Well, who knows? xD;

**LiLSeReNiTiE** Lol, I hope the plot continues at this pace. O.o; But I do need a bit more explaining … hrmmm… thank you :3

**Ashika**: :O You have not been online recently. O.o; Lol and I love you back. --; We can be … ah … never mind. xD;

**Lady ****Lydia** Ah, so many questions…! :3 I'm tired. ::sigh:: Lesse … Hiiro is simply using Usagi but, of course, offering to pay her. Rei and Trowa … we don't know. Actually, we don't know much, huh? xD; ::relishes:: Patience, patience, m'dahlings. Or a particularly keen ability to interpret detail … that'll do, too. :3

**Mistress Tsuki:** Lol … thank you … I think. xD; Usagi is being very passive. --; It's rather troublesome. xD;

**Black Aura-Sama:** I like making Trowa prominent. Lol. But … no answers, no answers. :3 LOL. I loved you third … ah … block of words. :3 Hiiro is being a freak. --; But he'd be more out of character if he weren't. xD; Lol, you're so random … I don't know how to respond. O.o; So I won't. Haha. Because I want to sleep soon. O.o; Butbut … your reviews … are so amusing … because they say what can be said in two sentences with 84429403 sentences. I hope that made sense. Lol. :3

_My making up for last chapter's neglect of you guys. xD; For particularly relevant ones only, though … because I'm sleepy and tired and going on cranky. --; _

**Black Aura-Sama:** LOL. Quatre. Love. Me. Well, if you force it, I guess it could be a clue. xD; And I think … well, wonder who'd be dominant in the Rei/Trowa relationship. O.o; It's like … Rei will seem to be dominant but actually Trowa is manipulating her. xD; They both seem to be so … powerful. O.o; But … in different ways … :O Haha. You amuse me so. xD; Where do you come up with this stuff? --;

**Lady ****Lydia** Lol … I feel like I can't answer any of your questions. --; Yes, I'm that incompetent. ;-; Well … some things _are_ as they seem and some things … aren't … haha. :3

**LunarPrincess** Rei seems to despise Hiiro at times … but she seems to despise the entire world at times. xD; But does Hiiro seem to despise Rei? :3 Does he, does he? :DDD I borrowed your "Duo holding knife at back" idea. :3 Andand … Trowa has a motive. :3 We just … don't know it yet. Or perhaps, if you're good with details, you have noticed it. O.o; I need sleep, dangit.

**Sprinklescake67:** Lol. xD; ::petpet:: Don't think too much about it. ; It's not that complicated. It's just that … I haven't figured it out yet … and I'm being ambiguous. xD;

**Kolinshar**** Benito:** Ah! I forgot about your offer to be a pre-reader…! O.O; Hrmm … I don't want to burden another person … but it'll be fun…! Lol. xD; But I also don't want my other beta to feel that she's inadequate. O.o; Eh heh … I think too much. xD; I will … email you soon. :3

**Usagi ****Asia**** Maxwell:** Evil, but I feel happy that you're scared despite that it's not real. xD; It's a high compliment. :3

**Airlady** O.O; Because he was fed up with Hiiro? xD;

**Sailor Grape:** You seem like a super busy person. :O I love your comments. :3 They're so detailed that … it makes me feel ecstatic that you actually read it to that degree to detail. ;

Please ignore the mistakes in the notes. o.o; It's late and I absolutely do not want to go back and reread them --; Thank you all for patience and support...! 333


	11. Never For Long

Disclaimer: Guess…! xD;

I wrote this a while ago. Maybe two to three weeks ago. O.o; **Sailor Grape** the-awesome-beta was very quick with this … but I wasn't quite so quick with updating. ; Thank you to her! This lateness of updating has nothing to do with her. :3 But … I really don't remember much about this chapter. O.o; It was another information-giving chapter, I think. Lol. Oh well, you need lots of information. xD; Enjoy…!

**Chapter 10: Never for Long**

Rei had requested that all the cabin lights be turned off, as it was late and she wanted to rest some before arriving in LA. It was quiet in the cabin – not silent, just quiet. It was a kind of quiet that was both comfortable and sorrowful as another day slipped away like mercury, away, away, so very quickly. ****

She could make out the vague outline of her face due to the soft glare of the dimmed lights on the oval of black night. She could make out her half-closed eyes, her a bit chubby face, her frizzy golden hair, her hand pressed against her mouth muffling the half-hearted sobs.

Usagi stared at that dim reflection, that faded dream of past naiveté, of yesterday's ignorance.

When had it become so complicated? Why had she not noticed? One moment, the biggest crisis in her life had been getting Rei to like her, and the next she was caught in the glimmering web of four deadly poisonous spiders, each hiding, pretending, laughing as she lay there, terrified, watching her glass world plummet like a graceful swallow.

Times like these, more than anything, she wanted to be anybody but Usagi, wanted to be somebody more powerful, more normal, more sheltered under the outspread wings of a father, a mother, a sibling. Going to school without worrying about being discovered, laughing with friends without looking for ulterior motives, cramming for tests without demanding a way out. Oh, how simple yet beautiful the word normal was at moments like these!

She narrowed her eyes as tears dropped, following the curve of her cheek, tracing the line of her jaw, and falling to her cupped hands.

Regret sat like an oppressing shadow on her chest, plucking tragic melodies to the solemn beat of her heart.

Usagi started as a warm hand rested comfortingly on her shoulder and turned, fearful, as if caught committing murder. She followed that arm to meet his eyes and uttered a soft, "Oh!"

Trowa stared calmly back at her, his expression blank, his mouth immobile, his movements unhurried. Again, there was an air, an intention that was conveyed through that touch, that gesture that spoke more consummately to her than flowing eloquence.

Still taken aback, she simply stared as he leaned toward her and pressed his lips to her forehead.

Very briefly, fleetingly.

He straightened and let go of her shoulder, looking to the back of the cabin. Usagi followed his gaze.

Her heart jumped to her throat as she saw Hiiro's limpid, smoldering eyes lock on Trowa. She didn't need to see the thin line of his lips nor the tense set of his jaw to realize Hiiro's mood. Usagi shuddered and turned back to look up at Trowa.

For a moment, she thought she saw him smile. ****

…………………

It was nearing only ten o'clock by the time they touched down in LA, having left NYC at around seven and crossing through two changes in time zones. Rei rubbed her eyes and looked up to her right at an already standing Hiiro gazing toward the front of the cabin. She nudged him out of her way and stepped into the aisle. Then, leaning over, dark, straight hair spilling over her shoulders, she shook Usagi's shoulder gently, waking her.

The blonde murmured a few words and, eyes still closed, reached back in a stretch. Hiiro shifted out of her arm's way and eyed her hand like it was the vilest thing on earth.

"Usagi, wake up," she said softly, shaking her shoulder again.

"Oh, man, we still have school tomorrow," Duo whimpered from across the aisle, wiping the sleep from his eyes.

Trowa glanced over and smiled faintly. "Well, that's entirely up to you."

"Enough, enough. We're not skipping two days in a row," Rei spoke up. And that was that – end of discussion. "We can drive you home, Usagi. There's a car waiting outside. We'll drop off Hiiro and Duo, and then-"

"Our ride is also here." Hiiro's voice cut through hers smoothly and without inflection. "Duo and I can get home by ourselves."

Duo's mirthful face became sober as he looked from his window seat across the aisle to Usagi in her window seat. A sudden gravity had come over him and he glanced over at Hiiro very briefly and very coldly.

"So, Usagi, it's just you, me, and Trowa then," Rei smiled. "Get up, get up!" She reached over to pull the blonde to her feet. "We're a ways from home so you can sleep in the car, too."

_Joy_, Usagi thought to herself, _another hour sitting in a confined space with Rei._

But she couldn't help but smile at Rei's sudden ebullience and couldn't help but to feel contentment bubbling in her heart when Rei grabbed her hands, smiled beautifully, and pulled her toward the extending staircase of the small plane.

They filed out of the plane like orderly ducklings and proceeded through the terminal, Rei chattering animatedly, Trowa smiling to himself, Duo and Hiiro avoiding each other's eyes.

"That reminds me, Usagi. I need to set up an allowance system for you," Rei mused, smiling teasingly.

Usagi's eyes widened and she stuttered, coloring slightly, "Oh, but I couldn't – I –"

Trowa interrupted her by affectionately ruffling her hair, laughing a bit, and pulling her forward. Rei glanced at him and grinned, also pulling a flustered Usagi along.

Usagi stared at the two, dumbfounded and blushing. Trowa was guiding her by the arm, and Rei's hand clasped her own as the two teased and laughed while she looked up at them like a child would at her hopelessly in love parents. A wave of giddiness surged in her, and she beamed at the two but at the same time, she was very aware of a cold pricking at the base of her neck.

She turned around to glance back, just momentarily, and saw Hiiro's arctic eyes glaring through her and Duo looking at Hiiro with a thoughtful, severe gaze.

…………………

True to form, Usagi settled down to sleep the instant the driver got back into the car, after holding the door open for "Miss Rei and her friends" and pulling out of the pickup lane. Within minutes, she was asleep again in the seat that Trowa and Rei had ceded to her so that she could have enough room to stretch out.

Rei suppressed a smile and glanced at Trowa. They sat opposite of Usagi, and though the blonde had at first sleepily protested the special treatment, Rei shushed her quickly and pulled Trowa in next to herself.

Another dispute successfully ended by Her Most Excellent of Excellencies.

"Moments like these, don't you just want to reach out and hug her?" Rei said affectionately.

Trowa didn't reply and turned to look at Rei so piercingly that she met his gaze and cocked her head questioningly. _Moments like these, I just want to reach out and hug _you, he thought to himself, but simply turned back to look at Usagi.

"Remember our conversation from before?" she pressed without malice in her voice. "Do you feel differently about her now?"

"Why do you ask?" he murmured, careful to keep his voice low so that Usagi wouldn't awaken.

Rei cast him a sly look. "I saw you comfort her on the plane."

Trowa looked startled but pleased. "Really? It was a passing notion in which I indulged."

Rei chuckled. "Ah, always so formal." And, as if on impulse, she reached over, took a hold of his arm and hugged it to her chest. Trowa looked away quickly, hoping that the dark would hide the color rising on his cheeks.

He gazed out the window at the passing streetlights and wished that Rei were always like this, always this soft, this pleasant, this cheerful.

"So?"

He started. "So what?"

A hint of annoyance was creeping into her expression. "So you never answered my question. Have you changed your mind about Usagi?"

Trowa didn't reply for a long time; he could almost sense the escalating irritation in Rei. Finally, he responded, choosing his words carefully, "She's a very simplistic girl."

Rei looked puzzled. "And?"

"Hiiro is a very complex person."

Rei let go of his arm and looked dejected. Trowa wondered briefly if perhaps he would've lied to keep his arm there if given another chance. "So you still don't agree with me?"

"They are very different people. Usagi is an open-hearted, cheerful, but very _ordinary_ girl. Hiiro is anything _but _ordinary. Usagi is naïve and ingenuous while Hiiro … Hiiro is difficult to understand, difficult to interpret, and difficult to get along with. They would never be able to understand each other. Hiiro, with his extreme streak of arrogance, will forever look upon her as the girl he saved from dire destitution and never as an equal. Usagi is not the type of girl to be interested in money – even you'd said so – and so the only way she could possibly fall in love with Hiiro would be if she were attracted to narcissistic, big-headed ignoramuses who would love only after the sky falls down."

He could feel the annoyance in him swelling as he continued prattling to vent, a bad habit that he'd had ever since childhood. Why was it that whenever he could speak one-on-one with Rei, she'd always insisted on discussing Hiiro and Usagi? Why, was he so pathetic that the only thing he was useful for was an opinion regarding the two? The annoyance came to a head and, thrusting the knife one last time, Trowa concluded, "And Hiiro … Hiiro would never fall in love with somebody like Usagi. Not seriously. Never for long."

Another extended silence. Trowa wasn't sure if Rei was taken aback by his vehemence or simply gathering her wits for a fiery rebuttal. Finally…

"It's so strange to see cool-headed Trowa be so passionately against something." Rei looked amused. "But in my opinion," Trowa started at the lilt of optimism and strength of belief in her voice, "the reasons you listed as ones why they would never be together are the ones that will bring them together." She smiled at him again, almost tenderly, and he felt as if his heart had stopped.

"They will change each other. They will bring a beautiful metamorphosis in each other and we'll be here to witness it. It'll be more exciting than … than shopping for shoes," she laughed. Trowa looked at her, taken aback. "A joke. It was a joke," she sighed.

Again, he wished that Rei were like this every moment of every day. But if only the discussion of Usagi and Hiiro brought about this side of her … he decided to pursue the topic with vigor. "But you've forgotten a very important outside factor: Duo. Duo is also interested in Usagi, and Usagi will be much more willing to turn to Duo than Hiiro – the path of least resistance. Duo would be much more suitable. They come from more similar backgrounds, they have both witnessed very similar situations, and they are generally more compatible. In the end, I hope, for Usagi's sake and happiness, that she ends up with Duo. Because it seems as if … everything Hiiro touches ends in strife."

"Don't say that!" Rei's smile was gone, and she turned away from him very suddenly. "He isn't as cold as everybody thinks he is. I know. I _know_. The willow? The words? Hiiro is complex, yes, and twisted, yes, yes, but he's not cold-hearted, he's not heartless, not empty."

Trowa sighed and reached for her hand, holding it comfortingly. "I'm only stating my opinion. In a situation where Usagi had only Duo and Hiiro to choose from, she'd be wise to pick the former."

Rei sighed and muttered, "Dream-wrecker." Trowa had to smile.

The car slowed to a stop, and Rei leaned forward to shake Usagi awake again. So gently, so lovingly. Like a sister.

Trowa started at that thought. _Like a sister!_ He felt a chill pass through him but banished it for another location and another time at which he could afford more contemplation.

"Are we there?" Usagi mumbled and sat up.

Only then did Rei look out the window. "Your apartment is completely dark." Her brow creased with worry. "Has your mother not gotten back yet?"

Usagi was wide awake at this point. "I-uh-she has to work late today. Don't worry! I brought my keys with me." Her voice sounded a bit too cheerful to Trowa but Rei didn't seem to notice – she was still staring out the window, biting her lower lip uneasily.

"Well…"

"The average life of a middle-class family, Rei. Can you not imagine it?" Trowa teased, smiling slightly.

Rei scowled. "I can too!" She sighed and watched Usagi get out when the driver opened the door. "Be careful, okay?"

Usagi beamed. "Of course. I'll see you tomorrow, Rei, Trowa." Rei smiled back, and Trowa stifled a sigh of relief.

When Rei turned back, Trowa brushed a strand of hair out of her face and smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry so much. She'll be fine."

The ebony-haired girl sighed again. "I guess so."

…………………

Haha Rei's so nice. She must have something planned. --; YOU KNOW IT! Lol. Urm … and … Trowa is so cool. xD; So suave. :3 Duo is acting weird and Usagi is just … there. Lol. And now I'm going to go make a chart of all the relationships. --; Because it's starting to confuse me. xD;

Oh and…! I finally listened to this story's namesake! Lol. My Paper Heart – All American Rejects … wow. xD; It's pretty. Lol. And interesting. xD; I liked the last two … uhh … stanzas. Lol. they're just repeats but…yeah And it's just … I like it. xD; I can imagine it fitting this story, I guess. :3 And … well, I knew I was going to like it because so far I've liked everything of All-American Rejects that I've heard. But yea … just some bit of news. xD;

Thank you all for being there…! Yours, Angel. I feel so idiotic in my review replies .. I always sound so mundane. --;

**Tenshi-Kaiko:** Hiiro _does_ have a lot to learn. xD; He's so spoiled. --; And don't worry so much about clues. xD; There have been in my opinion none regarding the Hiiro vs. Duo because … well … all in good time. :3

**Cheska:** Lol, really? O.o; I have only seen … one Hiiro vs. Trowa that I remember. --; I thought if there is any triangle at all, it'd be DUH. :O Ok, well. Thank you very much. :D

**Kobayashi Eiko:** Lol don't take me so seriously. xD; I liked that comment … it made me take everything in consideration. :3 As for perfections … I mean perfections in a sense. Rei is far from perfect, in my opinion. However, Rei _might_ be considered all-powerful but … well, we'll get to the psychological aspects of that later. :3 I don't think anybody will necessarily be a perfectly flat character … the first people that come to mind that might violate that is Trowa and, later on, whoever extra I bring in. For example … I haven't put much thought into Haruka's entrance … nor Relena's, nor any of the outer senshi, etc. So … they'll be like extras. xD; Everybody else … I'll try my hardest. :D And Trowa will develop something … he'll have his own story, if it's the last thing I do. :3

**Datajana:** Lol, I'd hate to have you have to go back and read. O.O; Thing never seem quite so enchanting the second time through … let alone the third, etc. xD; Unless it's just so good which this isn't. :O Like Lighting of the Fires by Duchess Daymaun P. Thank you about Rei's father. xD; Nobody seemed to pay much attention to him. ;-; It made me feel sorry for him … so he'll probably end up doing something… :D

**Aphrodite2:** Thank you, thank you! :D Minako is a long way off. --; Just wanted to wreck your dreams. xD; JK. But I'm glad I can still maintain your interest … I think very few non Usagi-centric fics have maintained my attention … well how 'bout I phrase it this way: very few non H/somebody else fics have maintained my attention. xD; I'll stop talking about myself now. .;

**Airlady:** YES! Very insightful. :D Rei and her mother … ahh … I'm going to love talking about that relationship. xD; We'll see it soon … maybe next chapter? Maybe not. We're not quite inside Rei's head yet … I want to keep the mystery going. :3

**CrystalBlueSeraph:** Thank you! I keep thinking it's so predictable. --; I think everybody ends up thinking that their events are predictable … but often they might not be so much. :O Or maybe they are. Haha. Thank you. :D

**Koldy:** I don't know what to say. Lol. :D

**Lady Lydia:** Lol thank you. :3 Trowa telling Rei … I wonder if he will. xD; Slight misinterpretation … so far, we only know that Duo and Usagi shared a past. Hiiro is the third wheel. xD;

**…don't even know what to call myself:** Lol but _will_ Trowa? :3 I liked writing the last chapter but hated reading it. xD; But oh well. :3 But yes, Duo is … but is Hiiro? :O Love is so complicated. --; I feel like I'm confusing myself. xD;

**Sailor Grape:** Lol, I agree. Usagi is too complicated to just admit to it and go away. :3 So we have a story. xD; Hahaha, Hiiro and his personality disorders. xD; I think up to that point, he's used to getting his way and receiving at least _some_ kind of a response to a sum that large … so he expects something. :3 At least shock, perhaps. Was there shock? I forgot. --; Yesyes, I agree with your game metaphor. xD; I feel so out of it though … I can't even remember how … oh now I remember. xD; Well, somebody has to find out eventually. The question is … how many somebodies will find out before somebody spills? :3 And yes, haha, please don't rule out anything. :D I love Trowa too … haha … it's showing. --; Well, I consider Rei's judgment more so … overconfidence in her own judgment that Usagi will succeed. :3 She thinks she has impeccable taste in picking friends and pawns haha. My vocabulary … ahahahahah … please don't mention it. ;-; Lol. Thank you veryvery much for spending so much time…! :O

**Lavender-dream:** Thank you! :D This fic has the most commercial tactics. Lol. It's actual literary value, in my opinion, is quite low. xD; But well … I'll try to redeem myself. :3

**K'tothe;NA:** Rofl. xD; I understood about half of that review. xD; I don't know what to say to follow up a "performance" like that. xD; So I'll say nothing. :3 And just watch you. And laugh. Haha, kidding.

**Kawaii Usa:** Here's the update. :3 Not soon, but pretty soon. xD;

**Frosty:** Yay. :D Here's more.

**Arella Hallo:** LOL. I love how you'd phrased it … is Usagi going to _fix_ Hiiro. :3 It's interesting … hrmm. :D And here's an update lol … though not much is revealed. xD;

**Platinum Star:** I will continue to update it. xD; Until … I stop. --; No couples so far … nothing I can concretely give away, that is. :3 Of course, you can assume all you want. :D But thank you very much for your comments. :3

**Purplepeopleeater:** Yes it does. Lol. Duo, Duo, Duo … I don't know what to do with you yet. --;

**Kolinshar Benito:** I can say that Dad will most likely play a role … Usa's mom on the other hand … Rei's mom will probably play a role too. :3 As for beta-ing … I'm still wondering which I want to send you. xD; Did you get my last email? Or did I … just forget that you'd replied? O.O;

**Jypsee:** Thank you! :D Rei and Hiiro, and Usagi and Duo, huh? xD; But that'd be too simple. xD; And what do _you_ think Rei will do once/if she finds out? :O It'll be scary. --;

**Athena Kyle:** Lol, I'm in the same situation … though I perhaps probably don't have as much dedication to homework. --; Trowa does seem to know everything … Rei is all-powerful and Trowa is all-knowing … ahah … and together they make the perfect couple. xD; That's just my speculation. :3

**Sere Star**: There are so many questions! :O I never realized … it's slightly overwhelming. --; I'm having doubts. Lol. Everybody up to this point is important though … :O Maybe this fic is extend itself. --; Oh, that'd be a nightmare. ;-; Lol.

**Jiyuu no Megami:** LOL. Trowa is "so hot" because he's so composed, I guess. xD; And mysterious. :3 Ahaha … Trowa's going to beat Hiiro in popularity. xD; The questions are seriously starting to overwhelm me. Lol. More planning is needed! :D

**Liquid Ice:** Lol but I must make sure that you're dead. :O Since you know too much. --; Rei still doesn't know about Usagi being her sister … but I'm sure she's slowly catching on. --; And yes, I did read the preview! It didn't suck! :P And it is difficult to get into Hiiro's mind … but if you pull it off … it'll be amazing. :D But don't aspire to be like me! Set your sights higher! Lol. I'm not worthy. xD;

**Lunarprincess:** Very introspective … hrmm … I like it. :3 Especially the analyzing of Trowa. As for Usagi being repetitive … yes, I agree. --; I'll see what I can do… :D

**Dark Universe:** Thank you. :D What is Hiiro breaking? xD; His reputation. --; Maybe.

**Shinjin Chronicler:** Who came up with that term? "Mary Sue" Lol. What if your name actually _was_ Mary Sue? xD; not that mine is but… Thank you veryvery much for your comments. :D Duo…Duo … I wonder if Duo/Minako is possible not in this fic, in another … that's what has been bothering me. xD; Lol, I like your ideas for Quatre's entrance … but sadly, no, I'm afraid. :x Yesyes, I agree. I'm trying to include a number of different "stories" because I don't want to focus so much on just one thing. --; So I agree … xD; And I'll strive for it. :3 LOL. And I loved your being rich phrases. xD; It's tempting … but I'll try my hardest not to steal them. xD;

**ThoseRainyDays:** I love your penname. xD; And it was your review that actually encouraged me to dl the song and listen to it. xD; So now I've listened to the song. :D

**Gackt Camui is sad:** Gackt-san! :O _You're_ jealous? _I'm _jealous. P Haha. For the longest time, I thought that this one just didn't interest you. xD; But I feel better now. :3 Haha. Lol I love you so much. xD; And it's actually influenced quite a bit by MG but that's more noticeable near the middle to end. xD; Which is where Quatre comes. :D And Wufei. And company. Yesyes! I tried to portray manga Rei. :D Andand … I wasn't quite sure if people were going to like her or hate her. xD; But Rei deserves to be perfect. xD; Or, well, "perfect." :3 I miss Aladdin … I want to watch it again. --; I like the Disney songs. xD; I'm relieved that Hiiro is mostly in character … o.o; Because I trust your judgment. :D Andand … I was a bit worried about the Prince/King thing too … because it was like … oh my goodness now they're going to equate Hiiro to Duo's father. X.x; Let the chapters accumulate? LOL. That might take a while. xD; But I will, I will. :3


	12. Sweetness, Sweetness

Disclaimer: No own.

Warning: It's boring. I'll rewrite it sometime in the future. :P

**Chapter 11: Sweetness, Sweetness**

_angelight_

It was difficult to discern who was more worried the next morning as Usagi trod into the classroom and fell into her seat beside Rei while stifling a yawn. Rei shot her a probing look and glanced at Trowa who stubbornly refused to turn and meet her eyes. Duo, the one seated farthest from Usagi, looked over at Rei and bit his lip, hardly holding back a shout of warning to Usagi who'd by then laid her head down.

"Are you all right, Usagi?" Rei broke their silent vigil first, ignoring the dirty look the teacher shot her and speaking as loudly as if the whole world were and should be listening to her.

Usagi's shoulders jerked and she sat up quickly. "I'm fine. I couldn't sleep for a while after you guys left. That's all. Really."

"Did your mother come home?" Rei pressed further, frowning in such a way that was most becoming of her. Hiiro turned his head lazily and stared at Usagi with his acridly blue eyes framed by long lashes until she shifted from discomfort.

Duo's heartbeat accelerated as, for one moment before she collected herself, Usagi looked confused. Hiiro's eyes narrowed.

"Oh! – Of course! What a strange question, Rei." She laughed a little too loudly, but Rei already had that decided look on her face that said she wasn't listening anymore.

"As long as you're okay."

But Duo knew it wouldn't end at that. Rei was not about to drop something that she was concerned over, a trait that made stubbornness seem both a virtue and a sin.

_Usagi, watch out_, he mentally whispered to her but couldn't do much more than that.

…………………

"This is stupid."

Rei stood up, walked over, and kicked Duo in the shin.

He bit back a yelp and glared up at her in the dark defiantly. "This is ridiculous. Usagi doesn't need us to stalk her."

"I've already _told_ all of you. I'm worried about her and I'm suspicious. What _if_ she's one of those people that lives alone while her mother works somewhere distant and dangerous? We are _obligated_ to help her."

"But-"

"You're too cold-hearted, Duo," Hiiro interrupted and then turned away as if he had divulged the secret of life.

_Way to go, Hiiro_. Duo rolled his eyes.

He continued as if he hadn't even heard Hiiro. "-Usagi is a perfectly sensible person. She doesn't need you to hover over her and pry into her life."

"Duo has a point," Trowa said quietly. "Usagi would hardly thank you for this, Rei."

"She will thank me eventually."

"Eventually may be a long wait," Trowa murmured.

She shook her head and put up a stony countenance. "As long as I know I did what was right, I can wait out 'eventually.'"

"Don't be silly."

Rei wheeled around and strode until she was right next to Trowa to glare at him properly. "Do you not care about Usagi at all?"

"I care plenty about Usagi," he replied coolly. "But she has her own wings. She can carry her own weight."

"We're staying," Rei stated.

"We're staying." Hiiro had turned back and from his sitting position echoed Rei's statement with equal firmness of tone.

"We're staying," Trowa finally replied defeatedly.

Duo didn't say anything but turned his face away from the other three and thought, _We're staying, but don't worry, Usagi. We just have to choose our words very, very carefully. _

…………………

Usagi had had her heart set on walking home that night, skimping a bit on bus fare and using that little bit of money for ice cream instead. After all, there was nothing wrong with walking – she rather liked it. As long as she didn't get lost, picked the main streets, and stayed within the pools of lamplight, it was one of the most pleasurable things that she could still find time for.

Her job wasn't far from home – about a fifteen minute walk – and that was one of the major advantages that led to her acquiescing to spend her evenings doing clerical work.

But those fifteen minutes were invaluable in that they afforded her time to think, and think she did.

She thought about her mother, her father, and Rei. But more than anything she thought about Duo, Hiiro, and Trowa.

Never in her life had Usagi been called beautiful. Average had been the best she'd hoped for. Usagi would have given anything to look even remotely like Rei, like her father. There was something about dark eyes on a pale face and sheets of equally dark hair that reminded her of dolls, of painted beauty that she had never even dared to imagine.

Mr. Hino was known for his regular and dramatic features back in the day and even though decades have passed, he has shown that somewhere in the Hino genes, there is one that allowed them to age well. Miss Hino – Rei – had clearly inherited her father's good looks coupled with her mother's exotic eyes and delicate figure. In fact, no Hino had ever _not_ carried the characteristic appearance of dark features on a background of pale, pale skin; it was part of what defined a Hino. If somebody like Usagi were to step up and tell the press that she was, in fact, a Hino, she'd be laughed into the next century.

But despite that she thought herself so incredibly plain, Rei had noticed her. Rei Hino, one of the most beautiful and successful girls in the country had chosen her for a friend.

Not only that, Duo, Hiiro, and Trowa had all shown the utmost affection toward her (perhaps with the exception of Hiiro though he _has_ begun to act rather singularly). Now, it was completely beyond her how they could even _stand_ her after being around girls like Rei who are like models waiting to become masterpieces through the medium of a skilled artist and some oil paint, but it was as it was.

Still, Usagi wasn't born just yesterday. Not by a long shot. Of course she could read Hiiro's motives – however startling that he'd imagine Duo was also interested in her – and she could see Trowa's intentions as non-threatening. The one enigma was Duo. And the ultimate mystery of life was Rei.

For the moment, she won't dream of anything – there is nothing to dream or hope for. They are all merely friends – acquaintances – and she was willing to settle for somebody a lot less flashy than any of them. Because that's what her mediocrity has destined her to, Usagi told herself.

…………………

Usagi turned onto the pathway to her apartment building and stopped short. Somewhere in the back of her numb and horror-filled mind, her stomach told her she was about to throw up from fear any minute.

"_Finally!_" Rei jumped up from her sitting position on the steps and walked imperiously toward her. "For a moment, I thought you'd died on the way home."

Usagi's mouth was open but nothing more than a slight squeak came out so she closed it to keep the flies out and settled for a puzzled yet sophisticated look to mask her utmost shock and the aftereffects of her adolescent heart attack. "Why are you – all of you –" at this point she let out a nervous peal of laughter "here? At my apartment?" And in case they didn't hear her quite properly, she repeated, "At _my_ apartment?"

Duo was already by her side then while Hiiro and Trowa observed from the steps like impassive referees in this spectator sport.

"Rei insisted that we watch over you. Is your mom going to be home tonight?"

Usagi gulped and eyed him questioningly as if timidly asking if he was on her side or not. He smiled a little and ruffled her hair, his vividly blue eyes almost glowing in the dark as he stared at her intently.

"No, she's away on a trip."

Rei's face broke out into a smile. "That's great! I _knew_ we should've come." She shot Trowa a triumphant smile and he shrugged in semi-defeat. "You're coming with us then, Usagi. You can stay over at my house. I absolutely demand it."

Usagi felt weak at the knees and suddenly realized that Duo's hand was under her forearm, supporting her, warm and protective. It seemed that Hiiro noticed it not too long ago either and at that point had stood up and strolled over to them, eyes focused on the middle of Duo's forehead as if wishing his gaze worked like bullets. Duo looked up and with the gleam of a smug and satisfied housecat in his eyes, his lips slowly curved up into a lazy smile.

Hiiro turned to Rei, the darkness casting dramatic shadows over his prominent features. "She can stay at my house if it's too much trouble." Duo mentally scoffed at the choice use of _my_ instead of _our_.

Rei rolled her eyes. "Don't be ridiculous. Usagi isn't that type of girl. And we have too many free rooms as it is." She looked expectantly at the blonde as if waiting for her ardent agreement.

Usagi smiled weakly and took one step to Rei, opting the lesser of the two evils. "I suppose one night won't hurt."

Rei shook her head once with the adamant jerk of a person used to getting what she wanted. "No, Usagi, you're staying over until your mom comes home and you won't be alone in the house."

Usagi's world crashed to the ground around her and in the midst of the awful noise, Rei beamed, Hiiro scowled, Duo's face fell, and Trowa looked like he was contemplating the sidewalk.

…………………

When the long lost princess finally stepped out of Rei's Benz (with driver attached, since Rei was _obviously_ above driving around for trivial things – namely, Usagi), it was already around 9:30 in the evening and the Hino Palace was ablaze with lights. Usagi bit her lower lip and looked timidly up at the grandeur that was as rightfully hers as it was Rei's. She took a deep breath and plunged into the chandelier-lit entrance hall, taking her shoes off and slipping on the comfy slippers laid out already by invisible servants. Rei grinned at her and pulled her into the den.

"You hungry? My parents are out of town but feel free to buzz in on the intercom and order something." Rei nodded to the pad of buttons on the wall next to the door. "There's one in every room so it's more convenient."

"Th-thanks." She scoured her brain for wittier words but couldn't come up with anything other than a silent, forced smile.

Rei didn't seem to mind doing most of the talking. "Are you tired? I can go ahead and show you your bedroom now if you want."

"That'd be great."

…………………

After a soothing bath before which Rei showed her a wall of hair and beauty products that she was advised to use unabashedly, Usagi, wrapped in lavishly fluffy towels, stepped out into the bedroom to find a pair of buttery cashmere pajama pants matched with a lacey, silk tank top and even lacier innerwear laid out for her. She glanced around and found the room deserted but decided not to take chances and took the sleepwear back into the humid bathroom to change. When she came out, the decorative, glass alarm clock whispered that it was 11:00 p.m. Usagi climbed up onto the bed and tucked herself in with sweet-smelling sheets before surveying the room.

It was a beautiful room decorated in romantic accents. The armoire had delicate angel wings and intricate roses carved into it. A large mirror was hung directly in front of the bed so the occupant could wake up and see herself in all her bedheaded glory. The walls had wood paneling and were padded with silk embroidery; from the ceiling, painted angels with rosy cheeks smiled mildly down upon her. Usagi glanced curiously at the remote on the bedside table and pressed the on button. There was a whirring and she looked up with awe to see the ceiling open and a flat-screen TV lower.

Usagi stopped and stared at her unclear reflection on the screen. This was what it was like to be Usagi Hino. To be surrounded with silk and brocade and cashmere, to be lulled to sleep by the rosewater mist of a humidifier, to be coddled by sheets that were washed daily. The difference between Usagi Tsukino and Usagi Hino was much more than four letters in the surname could express. It was _essential_; she would have been and entirely different person had she remained Usagi Hino.

Usagi almost felt like crying. Not necessarily because she envied all the material possessions of Rei but because … why couldn't it have been her? Why was it Rei that received all the rights of her birth and Usagi that was expelled from the Eden filled with the sounds of her father's laughter? What made things like this happen?

What was it she had done that was so miserably wrong that she had it all yanked away, all possessions, all family, all hopes of regaining anything?

Usagi didn't sleep that night.

…………………

"This is a Burberry coat! I can't wear this!"

Rei rolled her eyes and straightened Usagi's collar. "You're going to because it was _made_ for you." At the sight of Usagi's wide, worried eyes, Rei had to laugh. "This is what I love about you. Your ingenuousness. You're adorable, Usagi." Rei reached over and grabbed Usagi's book bag to hand to her. "Come on. The car is waiting out front."

Silence dotted the ride to school as Usagi attempted to sleep. By the time they pulled up to St. Gabriel's, she had a headache and an itchy throat. If her entrance wasn't flashy enough, when they pulled up to the school, Duo strode over and hugged her as if she were a POW coming home from the Vietnam War.

"Did anything happen, Usagi?" he whispered to her, delighting in the feeling of her softness against him, but she was limp in his embrace – asleep and burning with fever. Hiiro was facing him with so much hatred in his eyes that Duo thought he was going to lash out and punch him in front of the whole school.

"She's sick. We have to get her to the nurse." Rei gasped and the whole school watched as Hiiro, the pillar of ice in a tempest, pulled Usagi from Duo's loose embrace, picked her up and started jogging toward the school building. Duo, an infuriated expression marring his usually laid back face, sprinted after him.

"What'd you do, poison her?" Rei glanced up and over at Trowa who had such an forceful expression that it almost seemed as if he _wasn't_ joking.

She started running after them, muttering a curt, "Don't be an ass," after her.

…………………

Wasn't it dull? Yeah, I knew it was. I thought about rewriting it but then didn't because I was tired and didn't want to just throw this away. Well … I will end up throwing it away eventually, I guess. I think I'll end up rewriting all of it. --; That's the problem – there's always too many mistakes. I don't do much of a job editing. --; Anyhow, thanks for staying with me. :D Yours, Angel.

**Datajana** Haha I think I learned to love Trowa. xD In the beginning I kind of just shoved him in the background because I don't really know that much about him but … well … :D

**AnimeGirlInuyasha** I feel like I've betrayed your "trust" by posting this chapter. :P It was pretty awful. Anyhow, thank you!

**Usagi ****Asia**** Maxwell:** Still a long way off. --; Around chapter 20? Man that was longer than I thought … maybe until … next summer. Lol. Thank you!

**ThoseRainyDays** Lol well keep on guessing. :) If I didn't have this planned, I would still be swaying between the two. xD

**Jiyuu**** no Megami**: Yes, in a sense I think you're right. Aww … that's kind of depressing considering that if Rei knew the truth … well. ;-;

**Airlady**: Ack too many questions. xD Uhh well … Rei lives in the so-called Hino Palace but is often alone. I didn't mention if Rei could detect Usagi's crying so either 1. yes, she did and didn't want to mention it, or 2. no she didn't. xD US or Japan … hmm … will get back to you on that one. xD Really good questions .. I feel honored by your meticulousness. :D

**…don't even know what to call myself:** Yeesh, marching band. .. I used to play the flute. xD Well now that the competition is probably already over … how'd you guys do:D

**Platinum Star**: Lol we'll see. :D It should be leaning towards both but … --;

**Liza**: Lol thanks! When will Rei find out – quite a bit down the line but actually before Quatre and Wufei show up. And when will we find out who Usagi ends up with … probably not until 3 or 4 chapters from the end.

**Lunarprincess** I like keeping my Trowas mysterious. xD Hiiro seems more … aloof because he's confused and spoiled whereas Trowa seems more aloof because he knows everything. xD

**Arella**** Hallo:** I hope you didn't pine. --; I'm anxious when people pine lol. And yes, everything major will be eventually explained. But like Trowa said … eventually can be a long wait. --;

**Sere Star:** Trowa + Rei. :D That's so far the only thing that I feel definite about. --;

**Perturbedpercy**: Lol thank you!

**Cheska**: Lol thank you! I'm very flattered. :D Rei/Trowa is an almost definite. Rei might have a few outbursts before acquiescing though. xD It almost feels like Hiiro/Rei is the idea couple. --; But saying that is blasphemous. xD Kidding. Together, they'd be the power couple. --;

**Dark Universe:** Nothing much happened in this chapter either. xD And yes, I am a bit confused … I think I should cut back on the number of characters that are coming into this … :P

**BLACKAURAsama** Hahahaha thanks. xD You brighten up my life. 3 And for that I'll continue to make Trowa like sex. xD

**Uh-Oh:** Thank you! ;-; That was beautiful. Haha. Kidding. :D But though I can't agree, I'm quite flattered. :D

**Anime Monster:** Date almost sounds like too mild a word … maybe own her. xD

**MoonlightPrincess** I hope you're feeling better. .. Why did your mouth hurt?

**Funkangel** I have a tendency to bank on angst when I don't know what else to write. --; A bad tendency. Thanks:D Keep that obsession going. xD

**Tainted Spirit of Life:** Hrmmm … an Usagi/Duo fan … :)

**Thebodyfarm**: I feel like a disgrace next to you. ;-;

**Urei-Migoto** Hrmm … I'll say that one of your scenarios is actually similar to something I have … :)

**Gackt****-san:O**! Don't die! You're so cute in your reviews, lol. Teach me. xD Almost a definite yes to Rei/Trowa. I feel like I'm in love with all of them. xD And I've just recently seen Bridget Jones' Diary. Not the second one though. It was cute. xD It'd be nice if I were that witty haha. You're studying kanji? .. Learn me it. xD LOL I loved your last line. :D And your being a staff member was inevitable. 3


	13. There Was a Time When

Disclaimer: Don't own. No, it hasn't changed.

As usual, sorry for the wait! And, uh, it's not a very happy chapter. And I'm tired right now so I'll leave it at that.

…………………

_Chapter 12: There Was a Time When…_

_(.angelight.)_

_…………………_

The first thing Usagi saw when she woke, eyes still slivers of glazed blue, was Hiiro's stark azure gaze. Her eyes snapped open, and she struggled to sit up. He watched her movements with scientific detachment and didn't move a finger to help. If Usagi had flopped over and died right then and there, she doubted Hiiro would've moved an inch.

The instant she got up, a wave of dizziness hit her like a wet towel and she leaned back woozily onto the pillow.

"What're you doing here?" she managed. Hiiro's brow furrowed as his stare became condescending. Usagi wondered if perhaps he hadn't heard her properly. She cleared her throat and repeated, "What are you doing here?" She sighed as his mouth curled down in slight disdain and decided Hiiro couldn't understand her. "Okay, I'm going to go home," she enunciated, making a walking motion with her fingers before moving to get up. If Hiiro insisted on impersonating a statue, she would have to take advantage of it.

Before she could move two feet, Hiiro got up and blocked the door. "You're not going anywhere."

She approached him. "Oh, but I think I am." Usagi reached for the doorknob and started when his hand covered hers, rendering it immobile. "What do you think you're doing?" she snapped.

"If you want to go home, I'll be the one to take you."

"Since when were you my personal slave?"

Hiiro bristled and the hand around hers tightened. Usagi winced but refused to utter a single protest. "I'm not doing this for _you_. I'm doing it for _Rei_."

She scowled at him and snarled, "Everything's for Rei, isn't it?" Shaking his hand off, she turned away from the door and sighed, "I'm _tired_ of Rei. I can only tolerate living as a shadow for a segment of my life."

"So you understand the way I feel?" Hiiro's right eyebrow arched and a smile frolicked around the corners of his mouth. "About Duo?" he added at Usagi's bemused expression.

"No, not at all. I think you're absolutely disgusting."

The smile leapt off his face and his countenance became wintry with ire. "You would rather have Duo than me?"

Usagi sat on the bed and crossed her arms. "I would rather have neither of you."

He frowned and approached her. "But if you had to choose…" He let the sentence hang. Usagi looked up at him and shrugged.

"I don't have to choose, do I?" she stated matter-of-factly and ignored the way the sapphire of his eyes became tainted with black and was eclipsed by navy. He leaned in close to her and rested his hands on either side of her on the headboard. Usagi gulped and leaned back as far as she could; his eyes traveled to the delicate movement of her throat and he mirrored her gulp, his Adam's apple moving with sharp masculinity.

"You would choose Duo?" His words came out articulately.

"I…well…" Usagi stuttered and swallowed again as his eyelids drooped slightly and his gaze turned to her lips. In one fluid movement, she pushed him aside and stood up. He turned and eyed her with a certain kind of languor as if nothing had just happened. "I want to go home."

"My car is parked behind the school."

Her eyes narrowed. "I want to ride the bus." The bus meant being surrounded by other people who would hear her scream if Hiiro decided to do anything funny. Not that she thought Hiiro would hit on her but … well, caution was her middle name and she didn't want to ever forget that.

His lips curled downward. "The bus is—"

"Disgusting, yeah, I know. Let's go."

…………………

It was the strangest sight St. Gabriel's had beheld for all the years that Hiiro Yui had attended their schools – which reached back all the way to kindergarten – and had been a peer in his soon to be graduating class: a short, blonde nobody with the faint blush of fever upon her face pulling Hiiro by the arm while Hiiro followed almost obediently, as a kitten would duck its head to its mother. One of course couldn't deny the delicate tinge of contempt upon Hiiro's face, but ever since kindergarten years, if even a teacher would dare treat _the_ Hiiro Yui like so, he would have caused a riot and probably filed a civil suit.

The after school crowd around the front parking lot parted for the couple before Usagi came to an abrupt halt at the end of the line of students boarding St. Gabriel's chic-by-any-other-school's-standards bus. The people in front of them in line turned to look and hesitatingly moved to get out of Hiiro's way, but Usagi motioned for them to get on first while Hiiro shook her hand from its loose grip on his forearm and rolled his eyes heavenward; it has been so long since he'd had to wait in a line.

A minute later – an eternity to Hiiro – the two climbed onto the bus, and Usagi glanced around with faint dismay at the filled seats. When she turned, she caught Hiiro motioning for the closest kid to get out of his seat and scowled at him before dragging him to the back of the bus.

"Maybe you're used to people making room for you, but in the real world, you have to act respectfully," she scolded, making a face at him as if attempting to scare him into submission. Hiiro sighed and sat beside her.

"If I must."

"You can always drive home in your little convertible. But do try to remember that _you_ were the one who'd insisted on coming with _me_." Her head pounded to the beat of her words, and she shivered a little from fever but tried to subdue her symptoms.

Hiiro regarded her coolly before licking his lips deliberately and arching an arrogant eyebrow. "Does that mean you're in the position of power?"

Usagi frowned. The idea was almost laughable. She was half dead from the headache and half delirious from fever. "Does everything relate back to power for you, Hiiro? If I have more power, do you have less? If I have more money, do you have less?" She sighed and fought to think of the most contemptuous comment on her dazed mind and settled on, "You think like a four-year-old, Hiiro." A bit weak, yes, but it certainly got the point across.

He turned from her to look out the window for almost a minute before replying during which she wondered if her ability at insulting others had dramatically improved since her last attempted insult (when she had called her sixth-grade math teacher a half-witted caterpillar in front of the whole class). "I don't think like that," he murmured to the glass, seemingly staring more so at his diluted reflection on it than outside at the passing taxicabs. "Not at all like that." His gaze flickered downward at the street passing under them and his long lashes brushed delicately against the glass.

She said nothing in reply and tilted her head back so it may rest on the top of the seat, closing her eyes. Not two minutes later, she was asleep, and Hiiro was left alone with the rowdy yelling on the bus and his faint reflection on the transparent glass.

…………………

Her head rested gently on his shoulder in slumber, and his rested gently on the window in contemplation. He ignored that the girls across the row from them were darting quick glances their way and whispering excitedly before leaning forward and whispering their messages to the girls in front of them. Perhaps, there, the snake of rumors was already pulling itself up toward the front of the bus. She shivered against him and, with a sigh of defeat, he moved his right arm until it encircled her. To his high discomfort, she snuggled closer to him like a gosling against her mother's underside. The girls across the row whispered more rapidly. He looked up at them, his gaze cool and distant, his stormy blue eyes made smooth and glittering by a layer of ice.

_It's been a long time since … since it's been like this_.

…………………

For the second time that day, Usagi woke up dazed with sleep and sickness, feeling entirely warm and comfortable and safe. She lifted her eyelids slightly, her eyelashes shielding cerulean coyly, before letting them fall again while breathing in deeply; the scent was familiar. The mass next to her shifted and she jerked up, suddenly cognizant of _why_ the scent was familiar.

"Last stop! C'mon, up, up, up!"

Her eyes opened wider as she realized what the weight around her midsection was – Hiiro arm – and she clumsily pulled herself up to a standing position before Hiiro looked up, eyelids still slightly droopy from sleep and shot her the look of a six-year-old still grumpy after being woken up.

"Hiiro! We missed my stop!"

He swiped at the back of his head, ruffling the flattened hair up while frowning into the dying sun. "I didn't want to wake you."

"You were _awake_ and you didn't w-"

"Get off the bus, kiddos." Usagi swallowed her blossoming tirade down with a pained expression and whirled around to climb off the bus. Hiiro languidly stood up and followed.

"Wonderful. Just wonderful. How am I supposed to get home now? I'm sick and I'm tired and I'm dizzy and I'm at least ten miles from my apartment. What do you propose, Mr. Thoughtful?" she demanded scathingly as the bus's engine roared to life and it pulled away from the sidewalk.

To her absolute ire, Hiiro shrugged as if nothing was wrong and replied, "I can call my chauffer, if you want."

Usagi growled and started stomping in the direction of her home, leaving Hiiro in her dust. With a similar but deeper growl, he jogged lightly after her.

"If you want to walk, we can do that, too."

She stopped entirely and shot him an exasperated look. "I have a fever, Hiiro. I don't want to walk."

He looked a little startled as if what she said was news to him. "Then I'll call my-"

"_I don't want your chauffer_! I just wanted to ride the bus home like every other day and go into my _own_ home, not _Rei's_ and _rest_! Is that so much to ask! But _no_, instead I'm here with _you_ and _Rei_ and _Trowa_ and _Duo,_ and I don't understand _any_ of you. You all _follow_ me and _control_ me as if I were the newest fad when I _just want to be alone_! _Alone_!" She gasped for breath and wobbled a bit. Hiiro reached a reflexive hand out to stabilize her, but she jerked away and continued walking, unsteadily but quickly.

He followed her for a few moments of silence, carefully keeping a distance of some five paces to avoid the anger rolling off her in tidal waves.

"Do you really want to be alone that badly?" he finally asked, taking longer strides and easily catching up to her. There was, as per usual, not inflection in his voice, and he asked it as solemnly as if he were inquiring about a dead puppy.

She was silent for a long time before she stopped walking altogether again and bit her lip. "No. Not at all." She turned to him, her face crumbling with tears, and begged quietly, "Take me home, Hiiro."

She gripped his arm tightly as he hailed for a cab, barely able to see straight from dizziness and fever chills. In her world of swirling deliriousness, he stood tall and still, like her father had in her childhood. And, at least for that moment, Usagi secretly entrusted all of her quivering faith to Hiiro.

…………………

So, yes, I found this chapter generally sweet. Now before you jump to conclusions about blossoming love … Hiiro reminded Usagi of her _father_. Let's keep that in mind. :) Thank you for your precious time in reading this! Yours, Angel.

**My lovelies:**

**Datajana**Trowa. Trowa Trowa Trowa. xD Falling into place, you say? xD I don't think it ever truly falls into place until the last chapter so … long wait from now. --; I'm on chapter 12:D I just realized how far along I was, lol. But yes … 12 out of 40 isn't that big of a feat. --; We'll talk about falling into place when I get to around 25, hmm:)

**…don't even know what to call myself:** Aww, I'm sorry. I was part of band. Then I quit within one week of marching band. xD Drum line is awesome though. O.o; I totally would date a person just because he was on drum line, hahaha. Guy or girl. ;) Kidding. Did Rei kill Usagi's mother? Perhaps, but not in the legal sense.

**Kinoki** I have an adoration for love triangles. xDxD What happened to Usagi's mother? We don't know yet. We have what Rei says but I meant to instill doubt in Rei's story. What happened to Rei's mother? She's still existent. xD Just never home. She'll definitely show up more prominently in the future because of Rei's attachment to her. Usagi/Hiiro, hmm? I think this chapter was very H/U. xD Sometimes Duo/Usagi is so tempting … when done right, Duo can be so appealing, lol. But, well, Wufei and Quatre haven't even entered the picture yet. xD And keep in mind that Usagi, for a large portion of this fic, is interested in no one. xD Except Rei. But in the platonic sense, of course, haha.

**LiLSeReNiTiE** Thank you! You're too sweet. xD And sorry for an even longer wait. (I think)

**FrozenSprite** Another short chapter. xD I think this was even shorter than the last. It's been a long time since I hadn't made it to at least four full pages (this was somewhere around 3 1/4). I'm kawaii? O.o; I'll show you kawaii -- :bares muscles: xDxD Kidding. Lol, an amusing tug-o-war scene … --; Kind of scary, haha.

**ThoseRainyDays** A double-edged compliment. xD But I accept, I accept:D

**Serenity77:** Lol, you'll be dying to know for a very long time then. xD My apologies but … yes, I like to take it slow, haha. And sorry for the long wait. ;;

**Airlady** This story is particularly soap opera-ish, hmm? I think for the majority of the time, everybody's going to be in denial. And yes, Usagi is sick from being out in the rain and general stress, to put it mildly, lol.

**Thebodyfarm** Disgrace. ;; Yes, yes, yes, Rei/Trowa:D I like having the Hiiro/Rei/Trowa triangle. xD It's delightful. I've never written a non-Usagi triangle and making Rei so powerful … fjeiapjdlksja. I don't understand. It's so exhilarating. xD

**Funkangel** Well … think of it psychologically, I guess. In Usagi's soft-hearted and rather love-deprived world (as her entire family left her and, as Trowa mentioned in the first couple of chapters, she didn't have any friends), she, naturally, wants her blood sister to like her as a friend because that makes it okay that her father had a love-child so to speak. Either way, even if Rei wasn't here sister, she would still desire the acceptance of the social elite. xD Though Usagi probably isn't that superficial to have her entire desire for friendship based on that. But sometimes, she just wants to be left alone and go back to her world of no friends because that makes life so much easier, see? She doesn't have to worry about Rei finding out and she doesn't have to worry about how her mother died, etc. In the beginning, Usagi probably had some thoughts of telling Rei outright but with the mother scene … she certainly has doubts. xD That's my daily pseudo-in-depth analysis of Usagi. :)

**Hecate**** of Black Magic:** Thank you. xD I adore D/U/H. :)

**Damia**** - Queen of the Gypsi's:** You're too kind. xD No, I've never been called jaded but … it's an interesting experience. xD And, ah, in a rather stalker-ish note, I like your family's names. :D

**Lady ****Lydia** Ah, my dear, but that would be too simple. xD I'm not for the anticlimactic revelations. xD Well … you'll see soon how Rei views her mother and father. And in her mind, Rei associates this child with all the evils of its mother and father. She despises her own father, she despises the child's mother, and thus she transfers that hatred to the child herself. If Rei found out Usagi was the child … well … would she accept her? Who knows? Would you call the relationship between Rei and Usagi at the moment friendship? Hmmm … xD

**Unspoiled rini:** It's so tempting to do a Duo/Usagi. Duo is just … fjeiapjdflsa. xD And I'm very flattered that you deem yourself an "otaku" for this. xD

**Usagi ****Asia**** Maxwell:** xD I miss you. Now that Rei and the rest of St. Gabriel's knows. :)

**Dark Universe:** Urk … that would suck very much. --; Lol.

**Serenity:** Quatre is not yet here. xD Er … I don't want to say anything. ;; But Quatre comes in with something of an emotional bang. :D I'm excited, lol. Only 10 or so more chapters to go…! xDxD;

**Chaoticwisdom** It's wonderful that Duo has so many fans … I always thought … I don't know. I started out not caring about him at all (way, way back) but gradually began to adore him. xD He's just so … I think in real life, that's the type of personality I go for, haha. But yes. My introspection.

**SailorKagome** I love people like you. xD Who're just happy for the update, lol. Makes me feel warm.

**OkashiiJen** It wasn't soon but … lol here is it:D Thank you for the reassurance. :)

**TsukinoGoddess** She got sick from the rain in Brooklyn and her stress over the last while. xD And it'll be D/U/H for a long time. xD Before it becomes … something else. :)

**LunarPrincess** Anything good happening to Usagi? Maybe by the end of the fic. xD And maybe when she meets Quatre … if you consider it good … hmm. ;)

**i**** v o r y . w i n g s:** I think I can agree. With Rei and Hiiro especially. They're the type of people … I guess that you want on your side. I think if you truly got to know them, they're actually quite wonderful people. They protect the people they deign worthy of their companionship. Unfortunately, for Hiiro that means only Rei (it would seem, huh? He seems quite indifferent to Trowa and quite abhorrent of Duo) and for Rei that means only Hiiro and Usagi (though perhaps it's quite easy to agree with Hiiro that Usagi is nothing more than a temporary amusement to Rei – she certainly does treat Usagi rather brusquely). With Duo … it's hard to understand Duo right now, I suppose. But I think overall he's quite sweet, lol. And we know he has few bad intentions considering he knew Usagi from way back when. xD With Trowa … Trowa is still supposed to be in the dark. But he seems as if he could go either way, hmm? And with Usagi … she's about to start asserting herself. In most of the previous chapters, she's still scared silly, lol. I think at the moment they're all thinking of Usagi as if she were a possession and that in and of itself is rather irksome. Have I covered the spectrum? I just wanted to explicate my thoughts. :) Not to rebut yours but, if anything, to organize them and to buttress your opinion. :D

**MoonlightPrincess** Yikes. Toothache. ;; And yes, how right you are. xD

**Deaths.Bloody.Rose** Lol, I'm considering it. xD I'm considering all couples at the moment, lol.

**Jade Cerise:** I do hope your voyage (lol) into GW/SM hasn't been filled with the "betrayal" fics. ;; I would be sad. There are actually quite a few that have nothing to do with betrayal and I hope you get to experience them. :)

**Jiyuu**** no Megami**: I liked the last scene of the last chapter. xD I think. If I remember correctly…

**Aquafina**** rain:O**! Where are you been? xD Hahaha. You make me laugh. Laugh to live longer. And live longer to write more. xD

**Moon-bunny735:** Usagi? Reveal herself? Lol. With Usagi … the way I interpret her personality … is that ultimately she is very courageous but in the meantime, she wavers a lot because on the surface, she is somewhat of a coward. xD Paradoxical much? So she'll be wavering a long, long time but in the end she'll always seem courageous. xD So the question is whether or not Rei will find out before Usagi is done wavering.

**Lady Psyche: **Updated, k! Lol.

**Duo s luvergurl:** Thank you so much:D

**Falke****-ness:** The Great Gatsby, huh? I think I can see it. The mindless partying and alcohol. xD And I guess Rei and Hiiro are Daisy and Tom? O.o; They simply don't understand the cares of the common people. And the narrator is Usagi and … it works. xD I think it's the atmosphere, lol. And I'm very flattered. :)

**And in the end, you all are still too sweet for words, despite my lengthy replies. :3 And please excuse my incoherent replies. xD I don't like to read over my replies so they're always unedited. :)**


	14. A Memory

Disclaimer: You know the drill.

It's a bit of history, actually. Enjoy. :D Because for once, I enjoyed writing it. So, by gosh, you'd _better_ enjoy it. xD

…………………

…

_Chapter 13: A Memory_

_…_

_.angelight._

_…_

Usagi had never felt warmer or more forlorn. Upon getting into the cab, she had sighed and leaned her tired head against the window as Hiiro followed her into the back via the other door, much to her hushed surprise. After giving the driver her address, they sat in silence for almost a whole minute, her head rocking drearily against the uncompromising glass. Then a most remarkable thing transpired.

Hiiro reached over and with a tenderness that she'd never seen in him except that night when he'd looked at Rei with tacit adoration, pulled her over until her head instead rested on his shoulder. She didn't speak, and he made no effort to make the silence less embarrassing. Her eyelids lowered until only slight, cerulean slivers showed, and she stared numbly forward at the car's flashing meter – 10 dollars, 15 dollars, 17.50…

His arm slipped around her as if it were the most unaffected position in the world, and he gently ran his fingers through her hair. She glanced up at him once, her eyes huge with uncertainty and stunning against her illness-inflicted pale skin. He made such a poetic picture that her heart trembled, and, for one brief second, she almost feared that she loved him. But that moment went swiftly, blown away by the cool breath of her stolid intellect.

Even so, with his head resting softly against his own window and eyelids lowered until only the slightest lines of sapphire seeped through long, dark lashes, his nose straight and regular, his hair catching the light from outside so that the wisps of his bangs and the sweet curls at the base of his neck seemed almost ecru, his prominent jaw line visible against the expanse of pale, smooth skin, his arm warm, his body resilient against her own pliant femininity--! Hiiro might as well have been Adonis-incarnate. And this fact had certainly not slipped by the other girls at St. Gabriel. Many, she knew, set their eyes on Hiiro for his looks alone – though the intelligence, the attitude, and the money came as an appreciated entourage. The corner of her lips twisted down slightly as the segmented numbers in her line of view jumped to 25.75.

The St. Gabriel girls viewed Hiiro like Armani cologne that they would give their fathers – he came in a package and though the cologne itself was charming, the body wash, aftershave, and black ribbon with Armani imprinted on it over and over until it was almost hypnotic were what made the cologne satisfying. Usagi wished she could be as flippant in her choices, that she could choose so easily between Estee Lauder's Paradise, Gucci's Envy, and Chanel No. 5, with that minimal point of her finger. _I want that one._ _His name is Hiiro Yui. Get him for me. _And then he would be hers.

Her mind traveled around his image in circles, gently numbed by his stroking fingers until they slowed to a stop. The meter read 43.25 but it seemed too surreal to be real. Had they really been that far from her apartment? Maybe if she promised to go upstairs and get the money the driver would let her…

With a certain kind of negligence bred into those born with privileges, Hiiro straightened, keeping his arm around her, and inconvenienced his own comfort to reach into his back pocket and dig out his wallet, moving carefully so not to jostle her. Her mind quietly noticed that his standard-issue St. Gabriel's khakis wrinkled wonderfully as he shifted and that his silk, self-supplied tie which he wore quite loosely so that he may unbutton not just the top but the top_ two_ buttons of his St. Gabriel's bleached shirt – a habit which only he, Duo, and Trowa could get away with – brushed gracefully against her fingers which rested lightly on his abdomen as he moved. The silk felt cool and smooth – immaculate like its wearer.

He handed the driver a fifty and left it at that. Usagi stirred to get up but he gently pulled her head back against his shoulder and whispered for her to shift toward his door. She did unsteadily and got one leg out of the car before he leaned in and scooped her up. Her mind told her that now was an appropriate moment to gasp and argue to be put down, but, instead, she sighed in relief and leaned against him as he nudged the door shut.

He felt for her keys in her bag on his right shoulder and found them without compromising her position much. Her eyes fluttered open and then shut. He carried her as if she weighed nothing, and, for a brief moment, she had glanced back at the cab and caught the driver smiling at her as if she were the luckiest girl in the world.

And maybe she was.

…………………

Upon entering her apartment, Hiiro set her down on the sofa which doubled as a bed before glancing around in arrant disbelief.

There was, technically, only one room. The kitchenette was connected to the living room in which, on a coffee table, sat a computer monitor and a mug of cold coffee. A small T.V. loomed over said table. Two paces from it was the sofa upon which the blonde resident was currently resting.

A poster of Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor decorated the monotonous walls and beside it resided a calendar that was one month behind with pictures of kittens on it and a black and white picture of a chubby little girl wearing a straw hat being kissed on the cheeks by her mother and father.

In the kitchen there was no table; Hiiro realized with a start that she must eat on the coffee table while watching T.V. to pass the time and fill the small room with voices that sometimes chased the pall of solitude away. The refrigerator was small with only a few cans of soda, some yogurt, and a couple of eggs in it. He opened the pantry and saw only ramen, nutrition bars, and a cheap, substitute brand for daily vitamins. The stove and microwave looked scruffy but clean; the oven looked defunct, the tile wan, the carpet thin, and the wallpaper nonexistent. Hiiro found the words wilting in his throat at the sight of all these things he'd never seen before. This was what it meant to be poor?

By the time he looked over into the living room/bedroom again, Usagi had sat up on the sofa and was watching him with the wide, vague stare of somebody feverish and not quite awake.

"You need to rest," he told her quietly, and she sighed and nodded like a child submitting to her mother. "I'll stay the night."

Then it clicked. That was what was missing. There was no other bed. While she was distracted with fever, he strode into the bathroom and looked around. There was only one toothbrush. Everything in the house screeched that Usagi lived alone.

He decided to postpone that thought.

Walking into the kitchen, he grabbed three eggs and dunked them in water to boil. It was one of the two dishes he knew to make because once, when Duo and he were kids, Duo had told him that he was so spoiled he couldn't possibly cook anything by himself. So little Hiiro had run up to the cook and begged the mustached man to teach him the simplest dish to make. When little Hiiro had demonstrated his newfound skill to little Duo, Duo had burst out laughing and walked away. That night, Hiiro had ordered the cook to show him how to make the most complicated dish, and, with the mirth of an adult entertaining the whims of a rich child, the cook had taught him how to make a wedding cake. From that moment, little Hiiro promised himself he'd never cook again because eggs had made Duo laugh and what kind of boy goes around making wedding cakes?

He put the hot pot into the sink and ran cold water over the eggs before, only pausing slightly to roll his eyes, unpeeling them and dropping all three in a small, cat-decorated bowl. So the girl liked cats. He'd always associated cats with old women and spinsters.

He walked into the living room and commanded her to eat the eggs. She obeyed meekly with an air of quasi-gratitude. Then he ordered her to go take a shower so they wouldn't have to cram one in the next morning and was careful to listen for a thud just in case she fainted or something. He cracked the door open when she was done and shoved in her pajamas without looking.

She blow-dried her hair and lied down, shivering. Hiiro found all the blankets in her apartment and piled them on top of her and then sat by her on the couch, leaning with his arms propped on his knees, until she fell asleep, the scents of her shampoo and his cologne interweaving, creating an almost hallucinogenic effect.

Then he lied down on the threadbare carpet and, with a heavy sigh, fell asleep with only his St. Gabriel's uniform keeping him warm.

………………...

Usagi woke up to the sound of a faintly beeping alarm and jerked up from her sleeping position to look around. There was her modest T.V. There was her whirring computer. There was her Victoria Harbor poster which she had bought after hearing her dad was working there. There was Hiiro stirring on the g-

Oh, hmm. Hiiro. On the ground. In her apartment. Usagi screamed.

"God, shut up," he growled, sitting up and cracking on eye open to glare at her. She stopped promptly and stared.

"What are you doing here?"

"You don't remember?" She shook her head and shot him a wide-eyed stare. A sly smirk stole over his well-sculpted mouth. "Was the sex so good that it caused amnesia?"

Her jaw dropped, and she looked close to tears. He stood up and straightened his clothes. "Stop crying. I was just kidding," he grumbled and tugged at his tie. "I can't wear the same tie two days in a row." He heaved a sigh as if asking the world why it was such a burden to be rich before taking it off and tossing it onto an arm of her sofa. "I guess I won't wear one."

"Isn't that against school rules?" she stammered.

He glanced at her almost contemptuously and replied with simplicity, "I'm friends with Rei."

He ambled into the kitchen, calling over his shoulder, "The items on the menu today for breakfast are hardboiled eggs and pancakes."

"I want pancakes."

"Too bad. I only know how to cook eggs." He heard a sigh of acceptance in the living room and forced down a smile. A moment later, she closed the bathroom door. While waiting for her and the eggs, he ran his fingers through his hair. He'd have to go au natural today.

Usagi stepped out. "Are we going separately?"

He looked up at her from his sitting position on the sofa and raised a questioning eyebrow. "Why?"

She blushed a little. "I'm well enough. My fever is gone." His eyebrow was still raised. "People will talk."

Hiiro shrugged. "Let them. That's the first step to popularity. If people don't talk about you, then there's nothing interesting about you."

Usagi frowned at him. "That's not true."

He shot her a nonchalant glance. "Of course it is. You're not popular, are you? Nobody talks about you."

"I don't want people to talk about me."

"You think people will find out you're a scholarship student whose parents live in the poorest section of LA?" He smirked at her gasp. "You obviously live alone, and with an apartment like this, how could you have possibly afforded St. Gabriel's? But it's no big deal. If people know you're good with Rei and me, they won't care that you're only at St. Gabriel's on scholarship."

She continued staring at him as he got up and retrieved the eggs, her mind spinning with possibilities. Hiiro had assumed – well of course, anybody would assume that … that was, after all, the most logical assumption. Yes, she had nothing to worry about because it _was_ quite a natural conclusion.

"Eat and I'll call a cab."

She nodded and smiled grimly to herself at the thought of the truth.

…………………

In the cab, Hiiro had pulled her head to his shoulder and fingered her hair, and though she'd resisted at first, he'd been insistent and she felt obligated to repay him for staying over while she was sick. The gesture seemed familiar, but she couldn't remember why and Hiiro made no attempt to explain or recount to her what had happened the night or afternoon before.

Time literally stopped when Hiiro stepped out of the cab and pulled her out with him, helping her by the hand as if she were some rich and beautiful Parisian lady. Usagi, blushing, had jerked her hand back the instant she was standing outside the car and couldn't help but notice Hiiro's amused expression before he turned to pay the driver. She had then looked around the courtyard.

Nobody was moving.

All stared at the two with mute amazement. The wind rustled the trees a little and seemed to awaken a lot of the students who stirred and made good efforts to stop staring.

It wasn't surprising to see Hiiro bring a girl to school in a cab though more recently, he'd stopped doing it – ever since his breakup with Rei.

Before, it was a weekly if not tri-weekly experience. In the very same manner, Hiiro had brought Relena Peacecraft and Eir Ault and Claire Duchamp to school, and each rich and popular girl had received at least one opulent gift during her relationship with Hiiro – a Tiffany's bracelet; a Kate Spade handbag; one, small bottle of perfume with a custom scent mixed and named just for her. And each girl had reciprocated in kind – Gucci shades; a Ralph Lauren watch; a heady bottle of Armani's Black Code because she'd known he preferred Armani.

Rei had been the first to stay beyond a week.

Well, Relena had also stayed beyond a week, but that was only upon her dire insistence; sometimes it seemed though Hiiro had tolerated her only because dating a princess meant that he was a prince.

Relena had taken him with her on royal cruises, to delicate little luncheons, to luxurious banquets in which the queen and king sat at the head and foot of the table, but the day she had shown up at school in the newest Lamborghini with both their names on it in platinum plating and offered Hiiro the keys, he'd decided he'd had enough. So, dangling the keys from his forefinger, he had looked down on her and curled his mouth in excruciating disgust. Then, he had pushed past her, only remembering her delightfully crumbling expression, and tossed the keys into St. Gabriel's pond before turning back to face her, hands in pockets, with a masculine quintessence that was most often found in him.

That day was, or so many students attested, when tears were spilling down the little princess's cheeks, the first time they'd seen Hiiro Yui smile. And it was not a pretty smile.

After Relena he went through them even more quickly, from the boldly American Melissa's and Brittany's and Ashley's to the fashionably exotic Aeriz's, Renme's, and Jazziline's. The speed increased; there was a girl every three days or even every other day. **(1)**

And then Rei had returned from her boarding school in London which she only seemed to attend at her whim. The day Hiiro met Rei was a day not easily forgotten.

With the advent of Rei, St. Gabriel's was no longer ruled by a cavalier, bachelor king. Rei brought with her a royal court. She had reunited the forces of Hiiro and Duo, both popular by their own rights, and both with an insatiable need to conquer women. She had spent another week deliberating about a final addition to their court and had chosen Trowa, a silent, artsy student with many admirers too afraid to voice their admiration. And that completed the court.

For a long time, Hiiro was with Rei, and every week; the two arrived at school together hand in hand; St. Gabriel's metamorphosed into Camelot.

That had ended Hiiro's dating.

Then one day, Rei showed up to school with Duo.

Hiiro had gone insane and began frenziedly going through girls as if to shove it into Rei's – or maybe in the whole female population's – face for being hypocritical and perfidious and hurtful. Some he dated and then broke up with the next day before lunchtime, but no matter what, every day brought a different girl. He stopped giving them gifts, but to most, his presence, his attention was enough.

Despite lasting less than some twenty-four hours, most girls can look back on their brief relationships with Hiiro with fondness and a sweet smile upon their lips because it _had _been good; his regard had felt sumptuous, richer and more pleasing than any mink coat or alligator stiletto.

Before long, Hiiro had tired himself out and stopped dating entirely, only occasionally eyeing Rei with a kind of longing and glaring at Duo with more venom than a rattlesnake.

Gradually even those signs of affection went away. He no longer glanced twice at Rei though the royal court remained intact. His life seemed to have been consumed by a hatred for Duo. Everything was Duo's fault, Duo who had taken Rei from him and then moved on, when the two decided to separate, to other girls until he had returned to his pre-Rei routine of girl after girl after girl.

Many said that Hiiro, at the bottom of all his accolades, perfect look, and casual extravagance, was like the Hiiro now, this cruel, cold creature who could only streamline all his emotions into hatred for his brother, this apotheosis of mankind who had only dated for the chase and had become royally bored with it the instant that chase had turned him into the victim. But nobody cared, for Hiiro was far too perfect to hate. And girls still lusted after him, girls younger and older, those who entered St. Gabriel's and those who graduated all kept a vestige of him in their hearts, comparing future boyfriends and husbands to this ultimate benchmark.

Duo had lived under this regime, hearing from day to day himself described as wonderful but no Hiiro Yui. It was only after Rei and Hiiro had stopped dating that he was able to escape the eternal comparison against Hiiro. It was only after that, that most at St. Gabriel's agreed that this brother was better and fueled Hiiro's obsessive hatred for him.

But today had changed everything, chased all past rules, norms, and mores away until they lay quivering outside of St. Gabriel's gates, whimpering under the wheels of the cab that'd brought St. Gabriel's new princess – Usagi Tsukino.

Hiiro had come to school with a girl. And this time, she was a nobody. A _scholarship_ student, the rumor said. She was not excessively pretty; she was not excessively intelligent; she was not excessively anything! Excessively poor, maybe.

And what was even stranger was the way Duo had looked at her and Hiiro, how his jaw had fallen and his eyes dulled as if his world had crashed down around him and left only him, Hiiro, and this random girl standing. There were no other girls, no Rei to distract him, just this one, this one currently bickering and walking side by side with Hiiro. It had never appeared more clear to him that she was the one he wanted ever since childhood, and that perhaps all his amorous escapades had been nothing more than desperate attempts to find her replacement.

Now that he's found the original, he was going to stop at nothing to get her, even if it meant wresting her from Hiiro's grip. After all, he'd already succeeded in doing that with Rei.

…………………

By first period that day, everybody had heard the news that Hiiro Yui was once again dating. Relena Peacecraft had uttered a small, strangled cry when Claire had told her in a soft, sympathetic and understanding tone as if saying Hiiro's past girlfriends all had something in common and should band together against this stranger.

At first speculation had been that Rei would be furious, but that was proven wrong quite early on for the queen had taken the news with great fortitude and even a small, suppressed smile. She was the only one that seemed happy about it for Duo spent the day brooding and neglected his current girl of the week, Evalynne; Trowa shot furtive, disapproving looks toward Hiiro and Usagi when he thought nobody else was looking; and Hiiro became more and more annoyed as Usagi continued to argue with and ignore him when the whole school seemed to agree that they were a couple.

During second period, everybody seemed much cheerier with the happy knowledge that the relationship couldn't _possibly_ last and would be over before dinnertime. Then, tomorrow, they could all talk about it as if it were in the distant past and proceed to forget Usagi Tsukino's name, letting her sink back into the plain background of scholarship students at St. Gabriel's.

But one thing that day changed all hopes of forgetting the surname Tsukino.

After third period, Charlene was seen going into Chemistry quite breathless and confiding to her friend, Roxanne, that she had stuffed _the note_ into Hiiro Yui's locker. After fourth, when Hiiro went to his locker, he had barely glanced at it and, not even wasting time on an expression of contempt, he balled up the letter (written carefully on pink and flowered stationary paper) and tossed it in the nearest trashcan with Rei looking on but not commenting.

He had then proceeded to Calculus and sat next to Rei, to the diagonal of Usagi who was writing a letter to somebody.

Hiiro froze and turned around to look at her more openly. She glanced up and frowned. "What're you looking at?"

"Your notebook. What're you writing?"

"None of your business," she sniffed and returned to writing.

It was a pink notebook with flowers on it.

During lunch that day, he instructed a kid to dig that balled up note out of the trashcan and made a mental note to show up in the St. Gabriel's gardens at 4:30 sharp.

………………….

The garden felt almost foreign, and as he walked around, Hiiro had to admit to feeling a bit disoriented. The last time he'd been inside had been almost a month ago when he'd went to visit the fountain and found not only Trowa but also Usagi there. Otherwise, he spent little time in the park if only because Rei had adored it and much of their dating period was spent walking around in it. In the interim, the park was a much more appropriate place for individuals like Trowa who actually liked to people watch or plant watch or sky watch and then write blank verse poetry about what he saw.

He approached the center of the park. Despite his lack of familiarity with the rest of the park, Hiiro was well-acquainted with anything within twenty feet of the center; he and Rei had spent a lot of time there. To his surprise, his heart was speeding up in either anxiety or anticipation – he wasn't entirely sure which – at the prospect of seeing her under the willow, maybe reading a book or fiddling with her St. Gabriel's pleated skirt or—

"Usagi Tsukino."

She started and looked up from her book. He mentally rolled his eyes at her never failing to do things that did not match up with _anything _he or Rei preferred to be caught doing.

However, despite knowing with almost certainty that she'd be there, his heart, like that of a foolish preteen's, still jumped a little at the sight of her.

She smiled a bit and cocked her head in a question. Now Hiiro was confused. Most girls prepare something of a speech which they rush out in a string of words before gasping for breath, their faces red. Some girls even go to the trouble of bringing him a present. But Usagi, he reminded himself with a false sense of calm and bravado, was not like most girls. She must have something else planned, something unique, something explicitly _Usagi_.

"Did you need anything, Hiiro?"

He frowned at her, and her mildly pleasant expression faded a little. "I-"

"Oh!" Realization seemed to dawn upon her puzzled face and he relaxed a little. "You must want your tie. I think you left it in my apartment this morning. I can bring it t-"

"What kind of game are you playing?" he exploded, startling two birds in the willow who took flight, chirping reproachfully. "You sent me a note telling me to meet you here. Now stop toying with me and-"

"Sorry I'm late, Hiiro!" He jerked around and glared at the auburn-haired girl smiling hesitantly in front of him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Usagi's eyebrow rise in polite interest. At Hiiro's fuming glare, the girl stammered, "The note. The note that you received today. You actually came! Roxanne said you wouldn't, that you don't even read the notes anymore, but I didn't believe her! I…"

The girl jabbered on, but his glare was fading as revelation made his face slack with a tamer form of horror. Usagi stood up and moved away from the two of them, silently offering more privacy, her skirt flirting gently with the breeze, the streamers of hair from buns on top of her head tangling with each other like affectionate twins.

That was the moment, Hiiro always thought, that he found out he loved her.

…………………

I liked this chapter. :D (And it was really long so you should like it, too! xDxD) I felt like for once, I've captured the essence of Hiiro that I'd always drawn up in my head but could never depict in words. I also felt, for not focusing too much on Duo, I'd expressed a lot of what I'd wanted to get across about him. I would like to take this opportunity to warn those likely to be disillusioned that I am far from declaring this fic a Hiiro/Usagi. This chapter was planned from early on to show Hiiro falling to Usagi. Duo obviously already fell for Usagi ever since they were six or whatever. So now that both are there, Usagi is still indifferent. xD Please only deem what is substantial with caution because a lot of it is just my toying with you. xD You know you love me. Thanks bunches for reading! Yours, Ange-.

**Notes:**

1. These names – Aeriz, Renme, Eir – were from a quiz on Quizilla. xD I adored the names she came up with. And the pictures.

**Reviews, my dumplings:**

**Cheska**Lol, I was leaning more towards the rain in Brooklyn and general stress but … ice cream is another factor. And I entirely understand about school. --; I think right now everybody seems to have another option – Usagi can choose between Hiiro and Duo, Hiiro can choose between Usagi and Rei, Duo can choose between Usagi and Rei, and Rei can choose between Trowa, Hiiro, and Duo. xD Wonderful for Rei, huh? Lucky girl. :P

**OkashiiJen**Thank you! I, too, am often too lazy to leave reviews. xD

**Getupkid**Lol, I'm quite flattered. I think as a whole, the writing in "purist" genres tend to be better. About updates … I'm lazy. xD If you put me under your update list, FFN can email you whenever I update. You can specify it to only this story. :D

**Senshi: **I hope it's only been a while because it'd been a while since I'd updated. xD Thanks though. :D

**Dark Universe: **I feel super-proud about updating quickly this time:D I wrote it in two days. :D

**SerenaLupin**Thank you! And I'm keeping on. :D

**Tenshi-Kaikou**Wow, I'm flattered that you still feel the same way about the story after rereading. xD I find that I often hate my stories upon rereading. --; Firstly, like I said to Cheska, everybody has more than one option. Secondly, I cleared up the Hiiro conundrum. xD Thirdly, Duo realizes that Usagi doesn't remember him. Or at least doesn't recognize him. He's playing it safe up to now but this chapter presented a rather desperate turn of events. :D

**Hatami**: Thanks bunches:D

**Sailorveggie**Lol, I'm flattered, dahling. :

**I laugh at you: **Ah, you flatter me so much. xD I sure hope they'll turn faster. --; That way, MPH would be more fun to write. And it'll be a long wait before we see the outcome. xD Help me, somebody.

**Funkangel**D/U will definitely come. I think I really enjoy writing it. xD And, uh, if you thought Hiiro was sweet _last_ chapter…lol

**Duo s luvergurl: **It doesn't mean anything. xD It's best to not make assumptions until the end. :D And then we can all go back and find the clues I unwittingly dropped. xD Can't wait, huh? Haha.

**X5-452: **Thank you! I think the motives are key at the moment … especially since we don't know them. --; Well I suppose we now know Hiiro and Duo's motives. Rei's is a bit questionable and Trowa's … revelations will be so fun. Too bad I have to wait another 30 chapters. --;

**Airlady**Lol, you're welcome! More background, yes. This is the superficial background for Hiiro and Duo. Sooner or later we'll get into Usagi/s childhood, Duo and Hiiro's childhoods, and _especially_ Rei's childhood. Usagi's mother doesn't play too big a role except in one incident … I don't find it necessary to describe her per se … I use her primarily as a symbol for Usagi of something she never had.

**Damia**** – Queen of Gypsi's: **You're my other flatterer. xD Fitzgerald and Salinger, huh? I've never read Salinger. But I don't think I can compare to Fitzgerald. xD Thank you though. Haha, you turned my stalker comment quite artfully into a compliment to me when I meant it to be a compliment to you. --;

**Serenity77: **I'm so indecisive about couples. ;; I like to keep the pretense up until the end. xD So that's when we'll _all_ find out who it is. :D

**Lady Lydia: **Well, we've cleared Hiiro up. :D One of our great mysteries is resolved. About Rei … I don't think I would call them friends _yet_. Rei seems to be … playing with Usagi. Like a new Barbie doll or something. Indulging that doll because it's new and interesting. At the moment, Rei is mostly experimenting – can Usagi change Hiiro? Etc. :D But that'll change sooner or later. xD

**Arella**** Hallo: **Lol, I'll try my best. :D

**LunarPrincess**This will be long. Looking at the synopsis, it'll be around 40 chapters. I wonder if I'll ever make it. --; And Hiiro wanted Usagi because getting her meant proving to everybody, including himself, that he is better than Duo. Duo wanted Usagi first, for more obvious reasons, and Hiiro realized this and decided to capitalize on it. Right now Hiiro's regard/"love" for Usagi isn't very substantiated but next chapter especially, will be one that goes back and explains a bit more so that his feelings seem more genuine than frivolous.

**Bubbly: **More fluffiness! xD

**Thebodyfarm**I'm so indecisive. --; I think the reviews make me even more so. xD I'll decide sooner or later. --;

**Jade Cerise: **Thank you! I remember when I first started reading GW/SM. At that point, I was still so enamored with the couple that I didn't care much about the quality of the writing. xD

**Firako-chan**I love you. xD I love people who analyze because it gives me insight in what other people see. I agree with you. Usagi can never fully love _this_ Hiiro. He'd have to change first. :) As for Hiiro loving Usagi … I'll explicate next chapter so that it doesn't seem so sudden. xD

**Koldy**I still don't entirely understand you. xD

**TsukinoGoddess**All your questions answered in this action-packed chapter…! xD Kidding.

**ThoseRainyDays**I updated soon:D

**Chaoticwisdom**Hiiro and Duo are very different. I portray them differently. I like them differently. They're different ideals. xD In real life, I go for Duo more than for Hiiro. Okay, that was extraneous information. xD But yes, I can't say I like one necessarily more than the other. I might "like" Hiiro more only because I'm more used to writing him. xD

**RayneStardust**Lol, well put. :D

**Deaths.Bloody.Rose**Sorry, virtually no Rei. --; I think whenever I read a Usagi/Mamoru fic, I become infatuated with him. xD But it sooner or later wears off, haha. And I guess … I like Usagi out of habit. She is the most familiar nonexistent person to me. She and Hiiro. Everybody else … I've never written about anybody else in depth as I'd written about her so she's closer to my heart. xD

**Datajana**Lol, thank you! You make me happy, lol.

**Usagi Asia Maxwell: **I feel like you'll never change. xD And I think I love you for it, lol. By the way, I received your email. I simply didn't know how exactly to respond because at the moment … I almost feel like I'm not ready for another story. ;; There're too many going on! And real life… xD But I don't think I'll ever forget about my idea. :D And I do adore Furuba… haha.

**Chou hime: **Thank you! I hope you continue to enjoy it. :D

**AznSapphire**So do I. ;;

Good night, darlings. :D And many thanks for the awesome response. xD


	15. Be There When I Wake

_Disclaimer: I don't own GW or SM._

_Minna-sama, I return! : I certainly don't expect too warm a welcome since this section has definitely cooled a lot since I was last here, but I had the dialogue of this chapter sitting around for the longest time and tonight I felt like fleshing it out. And voila! A fifteen-age, 10 point size Times New Roman chapter to My Paper Heart. : There hasn't been one quite this long … ever. Haha. Enjoy!_

...

_Chapter 14: Be There When I Wake_

_angelight_

...

"You don't think she's one of those girls who 'values her liberty' do you?" Rei whispered scandalously as if the thought just struck her and she insisted on sharing its devastation with her companion but only in clandestine anonymity.

"Wouldn't that be interesting?" Trowa rejoined, staring into space with a bored expression. "She'll be just like Isabel Archer only not quite as pretty." 1

Rei gritted her teeth and checked the malevolent urge to dig her manicured nails into Trowa's jugular, instead digging them into the palms of her hands.

"Don't worry about it, cheri," he continued lazily before sitting up from his leaning position on the Rococo-fashioned chair and shooting his date an amused and surprisingly alert glance that didn't match his drawling voice. "You are the only Isabel in town. Usagi is … not."

Rei tried her hardest not to preen and managed to wave a dismissive hand with all the air of insouciance but none of its veracity. "You never answered my question."

"Yes, I did," he insisted, leaning forward and aiming at her a wounded look for doubting his sincerity. "I implied that Usagi is not an Isabel and therefore my response is no, I don't think she is that type. I think she is a hopeless romantic soon to be drawn in by Hiiro's charms."

"So-called charms."

Trowa smiled faintly. "You're quick to make the distinction."

"Because the distinction is quick to become apparent," she bandied while rolling her eyes and signaling a waiter over to bring another cocktail and platter of bon-bons.

"You should stop eating those." Trowa indicated the plate of sweets. Rei glared and he quickly withdrew his hand as if afraid she might bite it off if he tempted her too much with its proximity.

A few minutes ticked by without another word passing over the intricately-wrought metalwork of the table. Rei finally let go of a long breath and pouted unconsciously. "I just don't understand. Hiiro has been as romantic as Hiiro can possibly get and Usagi still treats him like an over-eager terrier at best-"

"Or a phlegmatic pug at worst."

Rei chuckled before remarking, "Pug. That's one letter from-"

"Pig. I know," Trowa finished with a discreet smile. "Don't tell Hiiro but I think the latter is much more compatible with reality."

Rei shot him a look of quiet cynicism. "Even if I did, he would never believe it; sometimes he loves himself a bit too well."

"He needs to start loving other people then," Trowa retorted simply, selecting a bon-bon from the plate and eyeing it suspiciously before popping it into his mouth. "Maybe then he'd move to terrier status." He paused and considered the process a moment while savoring the chocolate. "Though that might take a while."

"Don't think so," Rei said before taking a quick sip of her lychee martini. "Usagi is there to help him."

"Don't be so sure," Trowa muttered into his drink, "Not everybody has your charm."

This time Rei deftly deflected the compliment with mock arrogance as she believed – incorrectly so – that it wasn't entirely sincere. "Nobody does, darling. But Usagi has _something_ that's driving Hiiro crazy. I believe in her ability to change him if she hasn't already."

"I hope along with that _something_, Usagi has enough sense to avoid Hiiro at all costs. He is too much for her to handle, and she will be sacrificed to the maelstrom in his mind."

Rei shot him an irate look of waning forbearance which he returned with one of brooding presentiment. "Oh? Then who do _you_ think is proper for her?" She eyed him as if daring him to offer a reply that was incapable of taming the rising tendrils of her anger.

"Duo." Trowa hesitated and seemed to mull over his choice before inclining his head and allowing the light fingertips of a confident smile to rest at the corners of his mouth. "Yes, Duo is good."

...

"Y-you look quite stunning tonight." Hiiro licked his lips nervously and tried again with an unintentional, mild British accent. "You look quite stunning tonight." He shook his head, glared into his azure eyes with half-disdain, and ran his fingers through his hair before turning around from the one-among-many full-length mirrors in his private, walk-in closet and tossing the book aside.

"This isn't working," he muttered while exhaling loudly and collapsing onto the plush, ivory carpet. "You look wonderful tonight," he tried again, this time the slightest note of sincerity bleeding into his voice. "Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful," he murmured to himself before falling onto his back and staring up at the light fixture of Venetian-blown glass with irritation as if it had failed him in not imparting any apposite knowledge.

"This is ridiculous," he reasoned with the light. "I don't need to try hard for her. I don't need to try hard for anything. It all comes naturally." The light gazed back at him blankly, the careful facets of contrasting half-opaque and crystal-clear glass winking coyly at him. "She should be _honored_ that I even look at her," he argued. "Even_ I_ would be honored."

The lights reflected off the glass silently, with tenacious steadfastness, and stubbornly offered no reply.

He let his eyelids drop and studied the blemish his shadow cast upon the seamless carpet with a painfully sarcastic sneer on his face. Then, as if some unseen trigger released, his eyes flew open with fear and wonder.

"I'm trying to change myself for a girl," he whispered to himself as if afraid saying it aloud would damage his eardrums and leave him forever deaf – mute, sightless. "For a girl," he mouthed to himself, this time barely allowing even the slightest breath to tinge his words with searing sound. He stared into the light with imploring eyes.

"Am I—" The words caught at his throat and he coughed a little, the dry, light cough that always sounded fake and self-conscious when coming from others but never when coming from oneself.

_One day, there will be something that you cannot have, my dear child, and you will try with all your might to possess it. Whether or not you succeed depends entirely on how quickly you change your tactics. _

He had demanded that crazy old witch at the cheap fortune-telling booth give him more details, something more substantial, tell him, most importantly, if he would succeed, all questions which she shooed aside with a sweep of her overlong sleeves, dark eyes flashing hypnotically under strikingly emerald makeup.

_I cannot say, my child. You will have to find out yourself._

Yeah, thanks. Why the fuck was he paying her five bucks then? She could at least make up some idiotic story in which he lived happily ever after, possessing what he had not been able to possess. He had stomped out of the tent, every bit the petulant and headstrong ten-year-old and ordered his driver to take him home immediately; he never attended another carnival, scorning them as the fox had the grapes, claiming to hold a natural aversion to them.

But what if the old bat had been right? What if this is it? He had pushed the memory so far into the recesses of his mind that he almost negated it; there was nothing he couldn't have, he reassured himself often in the middle of the night, only things that he didn't _want_.

And it's been too long since he had wanted something. That was the initial intrigue of Usagi, was it not? He wanted her like a wine connoisseur did century-old Chardonnay, like a collector would another heart to display on his wall; he strove after her like those silly sycophants in his father's office for the next big promotion to Marketing VP or some such. And for the while, his life had purpose and he faced each day as if it was an opportunity to be exploited – ravished – and then tossed aside into the bin of wasted yesterdays.

Then what? When did this happen? he wanted to shout to God or Zeus or Confucius. Perhaps _how_ and _why_ were the questions he truly wanted to ask but those were so difficult to forebear that he took refuge only in when and callow thoughts of his former superiority.

...

When she arrived home that evening, a sleek Maserati was awaiting her and her landlady was flirting rather ostentatiously with its stolid driver. Heaving a sigh, Usagi gripped her messenger bag strap a bit more tightly and stomped toward the luxury car, cursing under her breath at pretentious, rich bastards.

The elderly driver spied her out of the corner of his eye and turned to her with a welcoming smile that spoke of immense relief. "Miss Tsukino? I was sent by Master Hiiro to retrieve you."

"To _retrieve_ me?" she replied incredulously, her glare faltering in the face of his grandfatherly visage. "Would he like to _retrieve_ my traveling cage also?" She waved a defeated hand at the driver's politely bemused expression and stepped into the backseat, gazing blankly at her landlady blowing a kiss as they pulled away from the curb. "For what am I being retrieved?"

Her driver peered quizzically into the rearview mirror at her. "Dinner, I believe, Miss Tsukino."

"Oh, splendid," she sighed and stared out the window as taxi drivers involuntarily deferred to the immaculately glossy car. "In Hiiro's mansion then?" Upon consideration, she had never actually visited Hiiro's home, always Rei's. Not that it made any difference to her, of course; to her untrained eyes, all luxury looked the same.

"Master Hiiro expressed desire to dine at the beach. I believed he wished for a picnic of some sort outside of the Yuis' vacation home." He shrugged casually as if he didn't quite understand the whims of Hiiro either but had long ago learned not to care or think too much of it; the wealthy were simply a disparate and unfathomable species altogether – like penguins or alpacas or komodo dragons.

Usagi's eyebrows rose. "So how far are we driving?"

"To Malibu," he replied, not missing a beat.

"Wow," she murmured and the driver peered at her in the rearview mirror with an amused expression pulling on the corners of his lips and eyes, barely masked by his well-groomed and graying moustache.

"Yes, neither expense nor patience is in short demand when Master Hiiro desires something."

Usagi rolled her eyes heavenward and inadvertently observed a well-cared-for roof. "Tell me about it."

The corners of her driver's mouth pulled down in an expression of ambivalence as he shrugged and glanced in his side view mirror to switch lanes. "I'm not sure you are aware of it yet, my dear child, but more than anything at the moment, Master Hiiro desires you."

"Pardon?"

The elderly man chuckled, the warm honey of his low laughter a happy contrast to the artificially cool interior of the Maserati. "My dear, he has become quite the distracted fellow recently. Says it's because of stress. Well, excuse my language, but stress my ass. He has become quite the romantic. Reads books on how to communicate to girls, you see. You must be quite the case, my dear. Master Hiiro has never had problems with young ladies before. I believe they are quite attracted to his appearances – to his wealth."

Usagi's jaw fell and it took her a few minutes to rearrange her startled thoughts and school her disobedient tongue. In the meantime, her driver continued.

"And Master Duo is having none of it. Walks around the house every day seeming half asleep and slamming doors. The other day he let a favorite parakeet fly away murmuring something along the lines of _if you love me, Usagi, you'll come back_." He paused to shoot her a sharp glance in the mirror which she tactfully ignored. "Your name is Usagi, I believe? Funny how he named the bird after you, isn't it?" He chuckled again, but this time there was the faint sharpness of interrogation in his laughter.

She lifted her shoulders carelessly and glanced out at the life-sized rendition of Rihanna outside a boutique in an act of spurious nonchalance. "It's not an uncommon word."

"Yes, but not everybody names his bird a rabbit."

Usagi looked away again from his intelligent, gray irises.

As if sensing some signal, he cleared his throat and murmured, "Ah, I believe I have overstepped my boundaries. Begging your pardon, my dear." There was an all too brief respite before he pursued further, "But really, you should do something to put those two out of their respective misery. I believe they're really quite infatuated with you."

"I would have to beg to differ," she snapped and then instantly regretted her discourtesy, adding in an apologetic tone, "I'm certainly no Rei."

The driver didn't seem to notice as his eyes adopted a faraway look of fond reminiscence. "Ah, I remember Miss Rei quite well. She was a most charming young lady. Rich, too, if I recall correctly. Had the two Master Yuis raving mad for her." He paused as if to ponder the improbability and then seemed to remember his companion has achieved the same feat. "In a different way though, mind you. She was everything they dreamed of and nothing they wanted." He laughed a little at the patent paradox but seemed pleased with himself for finding so apt a phrase and endeavored to explain further:

"Somebody that perfect, you see, should stay in the realm of dreams; the gilt rubs off too easily in real life." He paused again in gravity this time as a stern air cast his face in the cool grays of shadow. A moment passed before his countenance brightened and he remarked, "You, on the other hand, my dear, are entirely different. No resemblance whatsoever to Miss Rei except maybe the curve of the neck or line of the lip. Excuse me for saying so, but you are hardly a goddess, my dear. It must be your personality, though if both the boys have fallen for your personality you must have one hell of a personality. Either that or their childhood nanny would finally have to admit to herself that they are maturing into respectable gentlemen."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that yet," Usagi bit out.

"Yes, well." He made an exaggerated shrug and laughed it off. "They'll have to prepare themselves soon because their mother absolutely insists on a British education for the two of them. She thinks Oxford would suit Master Hiiro and Cambridge Master Duo, and they'll be sure to get in despite transferring away from Eton. Has wonderful insight, Mrs. Yui does, but she doesn't seem to quite realize that the two will simply wreak havoc in England. No pretty girl would be safe." 2

Usagi arched an eyebrow but had to admit the statement was true. "Yes, they're both quite prolific," she said, dryly.

"That's one way to put it." The good-natured man laughed again. "I like to think that the two Master Yuis will cross the ocean thinking English girls are wonderfully competent challenges and then after three days of flirting would realize that they much prefer American girls. Much more confident, you see, and much more willing to – ah, shall we say – compromise themselves."

"You don't think much of American girls?"

He made an apologetic face in the rearview mirror. "Oh, of course I do. They always dress very well and are extraordinarily well-spoken. They often believe themselves to be beautiful and therefore are." He paused to mull over something. "You seem more of a British girl to me."

"Oh?" She caught his eye in the rearview and held his gaze, curiosity entwining itself around her heart.

"Yes, a lady. Quite reserved, aren't you, my dear? Maybe that's what the Master Yuis needed all along – a delicate lady to settle down with and adore."

The curiosity died and she looked away again, bored. "I think that hardly complements their images."

"Oh, you'd be surprised, my dear. They are really both quite nice boys. Just … somewhat warped by their society, by the jadedness inherent in the wealthy, you see, especially those born to such old money even if their parents work. They don't understand the concept of work yet. They think they'll grow up and remain at the cozy age of twenty-five or six forever, clubbing, drinking, dating, and all that those activities entail." He paused and seemed to consider his words with more scrutiny. "Well, perhaps Master Hiiro has some notion that he will have to take over the company, but I think he believes – and rightly so – that he will ascend quickly in the industry because of his father.

His face relaxed again into a smile as the thought of said father enveloped his mind. "Now his father is quite the able businessman. His mother, too. A wonderful match of two people who are entirely intellectual and not at all sensual. They rarely speak to each other, you see, but both bring in incredible amounts of money. Never bother coming home because they can't stand to be around each other, though. The story of Master Duo's adoption is quite a tragicomedy. I believe they discussed it with each other for two months passing notes via the help in the Scotland property. They must have rehearsed their roles for they went to the adoption parish together seeming every bit the happy family, signed the papers, brought Master Duo back to the New York loft laughing and joking. Both left the next morning on the early flight – separately, of course."

"How horrible." Usagi really meant it this time.

Her companion shrugged as if he'd seen it all. "They won't divorce for the sake of appearances. And they do lead quite a comfortable life together. Of course, both are too busy working to really notice. I think Mrs. Yui had some idea of Miss Rei's association with her sons but she really didn't push for it. I believe she can't stand the way Mr. Hino has been with virtually every socialite but his wife who sits at home and embroiders. She can't tolerate weak women, you see, and she is a huge proponent of the genetic factor of personality. I believe I can safely say that she is quite mistaken about Miss Rei's – ah, shall we call it assertiveness? – but it's far too late to matter."

Usagi was at a loss for words. She was, quite truthfully, a bit hurt by society's characterization of her father though he deserved every word and adjective her chauffer had assigned to him. Unsurprisingly everybody in that upper echelon of society is well acquainted with her father's reputation, but she was sure a lot of the stories that precede him have been grossly exaggerated by hearsay and the real-life game of telephone. Despite her reassurances to herself, there was still a small room in her heart that dimmed and wilted a little at the sound of her companion's words, and she couldn't help but to want to say something to defend the man who occupied that room. However, her better judgment got to her first, and, instead, she merely closed the door and put the room, along with its resident, out of her mind.

"Here we are, my dear. Perfect timing. Master Yui wanted you to arrive just when the sun is setting. I must admit I drove a bit more slowly than I'm used to. Ah, well, Master Yui's whims are commands to everybody except himself." The elderly man chuckled a bit at his description as he stepped out of the car and walked over to open her door. "Come, my lady, turn the corner a little bit and you'll catch a glimpse of the beach house and step right onto the beach. A lovely property, this one is. One of Master Hiiro's favorites, if I recall correctly."

He helped her out of the car and pointed her in the right direction before driving off to repark the Audi. Hesitantly, she took one step and then another and another toward the beach until her shoes met white sand and her breath caught at her throat, rendering her speechless and immobile. The scene that unfolded before her was very little short of magical. Right on the beach, not more than ten meters from the greedily lapping foam of the ocean, there was a dainty round table set up, covered with navy tablecloth that caught the light with the labyrinth of silver thread tracing vague, flower-like outlines.

At the center of said table sat a good-sized, fishbowl-like glass of water in which ivory candles shaped like lilies floated, alit with saffron-colored flames that stood out majestically against the dark blue cloth and pale wax. The small flowers of white lilacs littered the dark tablecloth as well, sprinkled themselves over the immaculately white plates and silverware, and gathered in small clusters around the two bottles of wine that adorned each table – one white and one red.

On the fringes of the extravagant setup, Usagi glimpsed two servants who stood erect and handsome like English guards. The scent of white lilacs and salt assaulted her nose, and the humidity of the ocean teased her skin. Usagi wobbled a little at the assault on all her senses.

"Usagi!" A figure that she quickly identified as Rei broke away from Trowa and Hiiro and ran to her, her silk and chiffon skirt coquettishly playing in the wind. The ebony-haired girl gave her a quick hug and pulled away to clasp her hands. "Wonderful timing. The view of the sunset here is absolutely breathtaking and the candles are really beginning to have their effect on the ambiance. The wait staff here really performed a miracle."

In the face of not only nature's and the setting's beauty but also that striking prettiness of Rei, Usagi was rendered entirely speechless.

"We're having sushi, I think. Duo had something of a craving and Trowa agreed. Can you believe it? Sushi on the beach." Rei paused to laugh at their silliness. "We should be eating – oh, I don't know – oysters or something."

Before Rei could get many more words out, Hiiro, Trowa, and Duo approached from behind.

"Good evening," Hiiro murmured, eyes piercing, that startling acrid blue intensified by the burnt orange glows of the candles and the setting sun.

"Usagi," Duo greeted with a small grin, his smile seeming to infuse the word with life and color. "Come! Come eat! You don't mind being outside, do you?" His brow netted a little in worry at her slightest discomfort.

"No, I love it," she whispered and gazed around her again, wonderingly.

"I thought so." Hiiro mutters and hid a smile. Duo cut him a sharp glance and clearly caught the sly smile. "Would the three of you like to pass the night here with Duo and me? We have more than enough space and I think you'll find the house quite charming. It's very – ah – airy."

The invitation was to Rei, Trowa, and Usagi, but from the way his eyes never left Usagi's face, the invitation's purpose was blatant. If Usagi wasn't so taken away, she would've rolled her eyes; leave it to Hiiro to be forthright to the point of awkward.

"It's liberating," Rei smiled and nudged Usagi. "I think we should stay."

"No objections from me." Trowa drawled, both hands in pockets and looking as if he'd rather be chatting one on one with Rei. "The beach is good for thinking." He glanced quickly at Usagi as his beautiful mouth curled up just a little. "Very good for thinking."

But Usagi was too distracted to notice. "I'm not sure I should-"

Trowa's implication, however, didn't get past Rei and she shot him a look of warning before saying, "We'll decide after dinner, I'm sure. You'll change your mind, Usagi, after Hiiro and Duo take you on a tour of the house. It's really quite lovely, billowing white curtains and all." Rei smiled as she smoothed the matter over with the dexterity of one too used to dealing with the tangled web of social propriety.

Usagi forced herself to mirror Rei's smile. "Charming, I'm sure." _If only its owner were the same_.

"Come. Do sit." Hiiro had clearly gotten tired of the empty talk and was walking back in the direction of the food. The group followed him, Usagi desperately wanting to trail a bit behind but was unable to because Rei linked arms with her and guided her to the seat beside Hiiro. There she left the blonde and broke off to sit with Trowa directly across from her. Duo supplied himself as the occupant to the other side of Usagi.

Usagi peered curiously at the bowl of water with floating white lilacs in front of her. She vaguely wondered if this was some type of soup before catching Duo dipping his hands in it and then drying them off on his cloth napkin. She mimicked the movement and the waiter whisked the bowls away.

"An excellent time of year for an outdoor dinner, isn't it? Hiiro suggested it. I was really quite surprised." Rei smiled mutedly, almost slyly.

Usagi had to nod in agreement. "It's very lovely. I'm impressed."

"You'll be even more impressed later, then." Rei looked askance at Trowa to exchange an enigmatic smile but he only frowned in reply.

Usagi looked puzzled, but both Rei and Trowa ignored her as they glared silently at each other as if concentrating on the war waged between their minds.

"Maybe we can all go for a swim later," Duo laughed.

"It might be cold," Hiiro muttered in reply.

They lapsed into silence before Rei looked up from her sake roll and asked, "Didn't your father use to keep a couple of rowboats up here?"

Hiiro shrugged carelessly. "Used to. He decided he liked jetskis better."

Usagi almost laughed at the contrast and the sharp movement away from the romantic to the modern, but her thoughts were interrupted by faraway piano strains that seemed to glide from the house and infuse their surroundings with quiet melancholy.

"My father used to love Chopin," she sighed before she could catch herself.

Rei raised an eyebrow. "Mine does, too."

Trowa cut in smoothly, "Coincidence, I'm sure."

Rei paused and then relented, letting the moment go. "Chopin's a popular composer." She shrugged a little, her silky hair slipping from the smooth curve of her shoulder. Nevertheless, Usagi felt those black-violet eyes assessing her with scientific frigidity. But Usagi didn't pay Rei's renascent suspicions much heed; it was as if the music had swept her away into a nostalgic stupor. She set the fork down. All other members at the table eyed her warily.

"Who is playing?"

Hiiro hesitated. "Allow me to introduce you." He wiped his mouth and stood up to lead her into the foyer. She barely had time to look around in wonder before her eyes spied the grand piano set on a short pedestal surrounded by floor to ceiling windows. At the dark instrument, his artistic fingers dancing giddily across bone-white keys, sat an angel. The fading sunlight ignited a halo around his light blonde hair and brought color to his pale skin; his surprisingly dark lashes were lowered, veiling light blue eyes that reminded her of the Caribbean beaches her father had taken her to before she turned ten. His lips were slightly parted as if the music made his as breathless as his appearance made her. As if sensing Hiiro and her presence, he looked up, his fingers continuing to caress the piano keys. Usagi felt her jaw slacken at his startlingly clear eyes that seemed to reflect a heart made of crystal, encased in glass.

One corner of his mouth pulled upwards a little at her expression and she looked down, realizing how foolish she must look. The music stopped and she started. The blonde gentleman got up, his stripped dress shirt unwrinkling and rewrinkling to best suit his lithe figure and overlap carefully with his dark jeans. He stepped away from the piano and off the pedestal and walked up to Hiiro to enclose him in a half embrace. "I apologize, Hiiro, I woke up and had the urge." The stranger laughed a bit abashedly, his heavy British accent adding a thick layer of luxury to his words and appearance.

Hiiro responded stiffly to the hug and cavalierly replied, "My house is at your disposal."

The blonde smiled. "I thank you." He paused and looked at Usagi with unmasked curiosity. "And this is?"

She finally found her voice. "Usagi. My name is Usagi. Your playing is absolutely breathtaking."

"Quatre Winner, and I thank you. I took lessons since I was four." There was a slightly uncomfortable pause as Quatre observed Hiiro's expression carefully and seemed to make a mental note. "Hiiro here has played the violin for just as long. He's also quite excellent if you haven't heard him already."

Usagi turned to look at Hiiro with patent surprise. "No, not at all. I never knew."

"It's not something I do regularly anymore," Hiiro replied without looking at her.

"He was a favorite in the conservatoire." Quatre leaned in as if sharing a secret with her and glanced slyly at Hiiro.

"Conservatoire?"

"Nothing important. My mother wanted Duo and I to be well-rounded." Hiiro shifted as if ready to leave

Usagi's eyes, if possible, widened further. "Duo plays, too?"

"Yes, cello. But I believe he has more of an inclination to the drums." Quatre seemed ready to laugh but contained his mirth.

Usagi was in awe. "And Rei? Trowa? Why, we have a band just between the five of you!"

"Rei plays the cello also, Trowa the flute," Hiiro clipped before giving Usagi a moment to gape.

Quatre turned to her casually and smiled charmingly. "And you, Miss Usagi?"

She blinked as if startled by the question and finally replied, "I used to sing."

Hiiro raised an eyebrow. "Used to?"

"It's not something I do regularly anymore." She smiled a little at her repetition of Hiiro's earlier reply.

"You must sing for us sometime," Quatre murmured and at her hesitant expression, he added, "I insist."

"Oh, I couldn't possibly-"

He turned his pellucid blue eyes to her and seemed to envelop her with startling earnestness. "Please. I entreat you."

She looked down and blushed. "Only if you play more Chopin."

Quatre smiled as if amused by her bashfulness. "Only if Hiiro will join me."

"Only over my dead body." Hiiro growled. Quatre laughed a little, surprisingly coldly, at Hiiro's perverseness.

"Come now, Hiiro. If I recall correctly, you keep a very lovely violin in this house. You'll give us the pleasure, won't you?"

"Yes, Hiiro, please." Usagi turned big blue eyes to her companion and gazed at him pleadingly. Hiiro mentally sighed at his powerlessness in the face of her request and nodded his consent. Walking over to the piano, he rang a small, silver bell, and ordered the replying maid to retrieve his violin.

As they waited, Quatre diverted their attentions from the strangely endearing way Hiiro was eyeing Usagi. "Where are the others?"

Hiiro looked up and quirked an eyebrow, his bangs falling messily in front of one stormy blue eye before he made it shift away with a casual toss of his head. "They're still eating outside. You want to join them?"

"No, not hungry. Still quite jetlagged, I'm afraid. The things I do for my bloody relatives." Quatre chuckled darkly, almost curtly. Usagi decided it was a unpleasant laugh but when paired with his features and genteel manners, she couldn't bring herself to fear or fault him. The blonde glanced over at Usagi and seemed to be reminded that she was still with them. "Oh, excuse my language." The apology seemed to lack depth and was too propped up to be genuine, but again Usagi dismissed this angel's peccadilloes.

"I'm not hungry either," she hesitated, "You are from England, Mr. Winner?"

"Please call me Quatre." She hardly needed an invitation; she was already calling him far more endearing things than Quatre in her head. "And yes, London to be specific. I'm here in the States for a family reunion, so I must gratefully and very regretfully depart my host's home tomorrow afternoon."

"I see." The violin chose that moment to arrive. Only then did Usagi notice that Hiiro was silently fuming and looking very pointedly at the wood floor upon which Quatre's shadow rested. The blonde shifted, his shadow shifting with him, and Hiiro looked up as if just waking from a nightmarish trance in which he rid the world of the shadow and its owner.

"Shall we play?" the blonde invited.

Hiiro replied with a short grunt and moved to tune his instrument. Usagi watched, fascinated, as Quatre stepped again onto the pedestal and readjusted the piano stool; she scrutinized his slightest movements with the painstaking detail of a lover.

"Let's go outside. I'll have some of the help move the piano." Hiiro's words startled her out of her reverie just as Quatre caught her watching him and hid a smile.

"Are you sure? It's perfectly pleasant in here," Usagi stuttered. Surely moving an entire piano would be a lot of work. And Quatre did look so lovely under the golden glow of the theater-like lights overhead.

"No, I would prefer it. Wouldn't you agree, Quatre?" The question was added as an afterthought and sounded almost sarcastic.

Quatre's expression remained tranquil as he stood again in one fluid motion. "Certainly, if it isn't too much trouble."

With that, Hiiro instructed his help to lift the grand from its pedestal, open his front doors wide, and roll it onto the beach.

Rei spied them approaching and her gaze fixated on the blonde addition to their party. "Oh, Quatre, I knew that lovely playing had to be you."

"You're too kind, Rei." His smile was endless as he approached her and kissed her on both cheeks. He then moved on to shake hands with Trowa and Duo as all three patted each other on the backs with the awkward formality of friends who hadn't seen each other in too long. "Lovely to see you gentlemen again." After the brief reunion and at Rei's smile and nod to the piano, Quatre strode back to the instrument to join Hiiro.

"Will you bestow upon us the pleasure?" The smile seemed to make Rei's words blush.

Quatre rewarded her with a smile. "The pleasure is all mine." He turned to Hiiro standing beside the piano. "Shall we begin?" Hiiro responded with a curt nod and then the most rich, glorious music filled the small space between the house and the wide open sea. The molten notes of gold flowed into each other to paint a euphonious image of velvet, dark chocolate, and verdant sorrow.

In the music's luxurious wake, Rei and Trowa started to dance. Usagi was gazing at them appreciatively as Duo approached her from behind; she didn't notice him until he was practically at her elbow.

"May I have this dance, m'lady?" He bowed a little, his dark bangs falling into violet eyes only shielded by long eyelashes.

She smiled in acceptance. "Of course." His arms encircled her, one coming to rest at the small of her back and the other to grasp hers. The warmth emanating from his body was decidedly comforting and Usagi felt herself slightly entranced by the smell of his cologne that swirled lazily around him only to enhance his mobile mouth, masculine jaw line, and intensely liquid cobalt eyes. Night had just settled in and she paused a moment in their hypnotic swaying to look up at the sky and thank God for such a beautiful evening.

"Oh, there are meteors," she said hushedly.

Duo leaned in until his chest almost brushed tantalizingly against hers and breathed in the scent of her hair, murmuring, "Yes, this was the second part of the surprise."

"Amazing," she whispered in return, not seeming to take notice of or mind his increasing proximity.

"Yes." Duo paused and chuckled lowly. "There's a third surprise."

"What is it?"

"You'll see." And so the intimate conversation drew to an enigmatic close. The candles at the table were burning out one by one, smothered slowly by the water that was bound to doom them from the start. The darkness around them became deeper and more tangible by the moment.

He pulled away just a little to get a good look at her dreamy eyes, still focused on the small slices of silver through the dark granite of the night sky. He leaned a little closer, his breathing feathery against her cheek and paused as if daring her to pull away. When she didn't, he leaned even closer, inch by inch, until his breath was not yet cooled by the time it touched her skin. Only then did she become aware of the distance between their faces and her eyes swung to meet his. In the back of his mind, he noted that the violin had stopped its plaintive melody but the piano continued on with its clarity of notes, but he was distracted. At that moment, she gazed at him as if just now seeing him, her lips slightly parted. A small tongue flicked out and rewetted them. It must've been then that he lost his control.

"May I cut in?" Usagi jerked back and the trance was broken. Duo mentally cursed the intruder upon their interlude.

"No," he growled, not letting go of Usagi and looking up to glare at Hiiro.

"Excuse me?" The phrase was uttered softly, almost gently as if the speaker dared Duo to challenge him again.

Duo narrowed his eyes sarcastically. "The violin was beautiful. Why did you stop?"

Hiiro edged closer and lowered his voice so that it might hold all the hatred that was rumbling from within him. "Fuck you."

Usagi looked from one brother to the other and decided now was a good time to interject. "Please, Hiiro, do finish the song. The violin was lovely." He silenced her with a glare, his jaw muscles tight to the point where he almost looked crazed. Without another disdainful glance at Duo, he grabbed her wrist almost violently and started pulling her away. She almost cried out against the pain but instead bit her lip hard enough to draw blood. The metallic taste reminded her of Hiiro's eyes.

"Come, there's something I want to show you."

"Hiiro! No! Let go!" She struggled heroically but he only held on tighter as he pulled her towards the beach, his icy fingers demanding heat from her soft flesh. "I said, let go!" She finally managed to shake him off, though she was pretty sure her success was largely due to his letting go. As soon as she was free, Usagi rounded on him, cerulean eyes flashing like silver tinted blue. "Why're you always like this?! You can't possibly be interested in me. I'm nothing, remember? You called me nothing! Everyday you still believe I'm nothing! Why are you doing this?!" She felt like she would go crazy if he didn't give her an answer this time.

Instead, he replied with his own accusations, gesticulating wildly around him. "I did all of this for _you_. Do you understand that?! I did all the arranging, all the planning, all the surprises – the sunset, the candles, the flowers, the beach, the meteors, the dolphins-"

Her anger broke. "Dolphins?"

"Yes, the goddamn dolphins. I made sure everything was _perfect_ for _you_. Don't you understand that!? And what do you do? You _dance_ with my brother as if _he_ planned everything. You _stare_ at my English prep school friend as if he's a god. You _glare_ at me as if I'm some sort of monster. What're you trying to do?! What're you _doing_ to _me_?!" He was already going crazy waiting for an answer.

"Dolphins..." Usagi stared out into the dark waters in wonder at the vague forms not far into the distance. "They're dolphins?"

Hiiro eyed her sullenly, his dark hair even more windswept by the sea breeze, gentle tendrils falling in front of those eyes that matched the color of the ocean at night. "Yes, damn it, they are. They like this beach. The water is warmer."

"Will they let me approach them?" She was already walking toward them.

He followed her just to make sure the jealous sea didn't steal her away from him. "Sure, they're friendly creatures."

The water was already a little above her waist before a dolphin timidly approached her. She brushed her fingers gently against its slippery exterior and laughed a little at its delighted click-chirping. Hiiro approached her from behind and rested a hesitant hand upon her still dry shoulder. "Dance with me."

She glanced back at him, a little taken aback. "Oh, I-"

"I insist."

And that was that. His arms encircled her waist because the sand beneath them was too precarious to allow normal dancing, and he pulled her to him more closely than she had ever been to Duo. After a brief moment of even more distant notes of Chopin, he leaned his head in until it rested on hers. Hiiro closed his eyes briefly and relished the feel of her next to him, separated only every once a while by a thin layer of water and wet fabric. "You are the most frustrating creature ever, you know that?"

Usagi was silent, wondering if she should be backing away and heading toward the beach. But the water was so cold, and Hiiro, despite all the frigidity of his personality, was so very warm. His strong arms around her kept the icy grips of the water at bay, and his chest against hers felt like the promontory that would be her salvation if she were ever lost at sea.

"I don't know what I see in you. But whatever it is…" Hiiro broke off and looked off at the horizon pensively. The night was so dark now that it was difficult to discern the sky from the ocean. They passed the next few minutes in silence before a particularly forceful current swept toward land and the sand under their feet shifted. Usagi slipped and Hiiro barely had time to catch her before falling on top of her. A split second passed as both became intensely aware of how their bodies pressed against each other's before Hiiro kicked at the water and regained his footing. He made sure she was steady before letting her go and wiping the stinging salt water from his eyes. Chopin came to a gentle close. Usagi was visibly shivering and for one of the few times in his life, Hiiro noticed somebody else's discomfort before his own. "Come, you need dry clothing."

She gently shrugged off the arm he wound around her shoulder to pull her close. "This was a beautiful night, Hiiro. Thank you, but…"

"There's a but?"

She took a deep breath as if to draw courage from the salty night air. "I'm probably being really dense but I don't know what you're after, Hiiro. Why're you doing all this? Am I nothing more than leverage against Duo?"

"You don't know why I'm doing all this?" he asked incredulously.

"Well, whatever the reason, I really can't say that I feel any inclination to reciprocate. Really, I-" He leaned in before she could react and pressed his lips forcefully against hers. Usagi had wondered before sometimes what Hiiro's lips might feel like; they were so perfect that they almost seemed sculpted. With them against hers, she could indeed verify that they were unrelenting and smooth like those of a Greek god's sculpture, but at the same time they were hot and demanding enough that it was obvious they didn't belong to an inanimate piece of art. She was limp for a brief moment before she started struggling. Finally, she freed one arm from his embrace and with a smack that was quickly fought over and swallowed by the ravenous night and ocean, she slapped him. He pulled away sharply to see her shuddering, this time not from the cold but rather from suppressed anger. "You…you_.._."

He schooled his expression from one of shock and hurt to bitterness and mockery. "You're right. You're nothing. You're just my attempt to conquer Duo." His words echoed in the hollowness of his heart, each reverberation convincing him a bit more that they were untrue.

"Go to hell," she whispered, too surprised by his assertion despite her earlier misgivings to come off as intensely as she had hoped.

"I'll meet you there," he rejoined before turning back towards the beach. She watched him go and gritted her teeth as he mock saluted her without turning around. He had already disappeared into the beach house by the time she reached land.

Quatre was just starting another Chopin; the sad strains in a different minor key made her heart throb more painfully than the last song. Duo approached her while Rei and Trowa hung back, giving the two their much-needed space.

The braided man hugged her first despite her drenched clothing. He pulled away and searched her face anxiously for pain or heartbreak. "Are you okay? Did he do anything to you?"

"I'm fine," she answered distractedly. "All of my opinions of Hiiro have just been reaffirmed." Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Rei turn and whisper something to Trowa. Trowa nodded solemnly as if to reply but didn't look to meet Rei's questioning gaze.

Duo was silent for a minute as if thinking through the implications of her statement. "Come on, you need dry clothes." He led her into the house and ordered a nearby maid to get a change of clothes. As they waited, he pulled his dress shirt off and draped it over her. She was too busy shivering to stare at his half nakedness. "You know, Usagi, Hiiro really went to a great deal of trouble to create this night. I'm sorry I hadn't thought of it." Duo laughed a little and for some reason it sounded sad. "Must be from the books he's been reading all the time."

Usagi refused to look up from the wood floor, her eyes tracing the half natural, half artificial grain of the light-colored wood. She had scolded her heart several times already to stop beating so quickly, but even she had to admit that Hiiro's closeness and attention had affected her. "It was all a façade. It was all just his trying to outdo you. How do you live with that? Isn't it better to just leave?"

"Suffering breeds character," Duo sighed and quirked a smile at his hypocrisy. "Besides, I was adopted, so I know what it's like to not have this beach house, the spring breaks in Tokyo, the castle in Scotland. More than anything, I know what it's like to not have enough to eat. It's comfortable here. I don't think I can go back to the orphanage and scavenging on the streets."

"You're almost eighteen. You can take loans and go to college." Her tone was bordering on accusatory.

Duo glanced at her, his blue-violet eyes solemn. "I want to go to Harvard or Cambridge. I need to. Besides, I have become accustomed to this type of living."

"Oh. Harvard or Cambridge, huh?" She sighed upon hearing yet another set of lofty goals.

"Yeah, the competition is both ways." Duo laughed and nodded a little as if to himself. "I have a need to outdo Hiiro, too. But I never was really competition in the academic field. Hiiro is something of a genius. The son of a bitch has a photographic memory or something crazy like that. Makes his father proud." Bitterness made Duo's voice crack; Usagi forgave him for it.

"I guess I can understand the sibling rivalry. I don't know what I plan to do for college. Maybe I'll take a year off. Maybe I'll apply to Julliard. Maybe I'll barter my way into Cambridge."

Duo looked up at her. "Julliard?"

"For singing. I like to sing." She smiled at him and finally noticed his bare chest. Blushing, she turned away; he hid a small smile.

"You must sing for us sometime," he murmured, his lips barely moving.

"Perhaps I will." Her face was still averted to avoid looking at his state of undress.

Duo leaned back on the small sofa and laughed out loud. "You never cease to amaze me."

She glanced at him again. "Oh? With my absolute normality?" Realizing her slip-up, Usagi quickly looked away, again blushing.

Duo felt like kissing her hands at the childish gesture. "No, with your spirit, your interests, your reactions," he smiled fondly as if at a memory. "You remind me of someone I used to love."

Usagi was silent. Duo leaned a little closer and only by the shifting weight on the sofa did Usagi realize what he was doing. Just in time, she turned her head away and his soft lips met her blushing cheek. The maid returned at that moment with a silk and lace nightgown. Without a word, Usagi accepted the article of clothing and went to the bathroom to change, leaving Duo slightly disappointed and slightly amused.

By the time she came out, Quatre had joined Duo, the two chatting like old friends over two cups half filled with red wine. Rei and Trowa remained outside and Hiiro was nowhere to be found.

Duo looked up first, but Quatre beat him to words. "It complements you." The blonde smiled his appreciation of it and raised his glass to her, his long, slender fingers curling with an aristocratic air around the stem of the wineglass.

Usagi colored as Duo's eyes narrowed. "Thank you, I think I'll retire." She bowed to excuse herself and the maid came to show her her room. They climbed the stairs together and for some reason, she could feel Duo's and Quatre's eyes following her retreating form; maybe the nightgown really looked _that_ good on her. She almost laughed at the thought.

The maid increased the lightening as they entered Usagi's room and the blonde smiled as she was indeed greeted by the sight of the billowing white curtains that Rei had promised. The canopy bed of white chiffon had just enough layers to hide its occupant but not enough to be oppressive during the hottest days of summer. As she let down her hair and combed through it, she thought through the night's dizzying array of events and suppressed a small sigh. Despite her suspicions about Hiiro, Usagi felt she had treated him unjustly and for the space of some fifteen seconds almost had herself convinced to go knock on Hiiro's door to apologize. But she thought better of it and instead climbed into bed. Alas, the effort was useless and before she knew it, she was pulling aside the sliding door to the balcony and stepping out into the salty night air again.

Quatre was back outside, his fingers once again inexorably attracted to the piano. This time instead of Hiiro on the violin, Duo accompanied the blonde with the lush yet mellow intonations of a cello. Rei and Trowa appeared to have retired.

Usagi rested her chin on her elbows which were propped up on the finely wrought balcony rail. She watched them almost secretively, mesmerized by the music and their beatific countenances.

A violin cut into the music like a knife so sharp that it causes no pain and draws very little blood. Usagi started as its higher notes melded harmoniously in with those of Duo and Quatre. She turned to her left and on that adjacent balcony was Hiiro with his chin resting upon the same violin as earlier. Though his fingers moved deftly up and down the violin and his other arm wove majestically and vibrated appropriately to add vibrato, his eyes never once wavered from her face.

Without realizing it herself, Usagi began to sing. When she did realize that the strange addition of a voice was actually hers, Usagi marveled at the clarity of her tone and the expression of her notes despite the lack of words. She turned from Hiiro's piercing gaze and looked out into the distant darkness again. From her vantage point, the intermittently streaming meteors and dark forms of dolphins breaking through the waves combined to form one consummate picture of Hiiro's efforts, romance, and adoration. Usagi closed her eyes briefly and wished she could encase that image into her memory forever. When she opened them again, she saw Duo and Quatre both looking up, being alerted to her presence by her voice which never stopped. They were smiling. For a moment, she felt the heavy weight of three pairs of eyes – Hiiro's, Duo's, and Quatre's – upon her frail shoulders. She smiled back shakily.

She headed back down to the beach, her voice prevailing through the house and into the night air. The song drew to a muted close as she approached the grand piano again.

"I think I'll go sleep." Duo put the cello back into its case lovingly, gave her a breath of a kiss on the cheek, and went into the house. Usagi looked up searchingly at Hiiro's balcony and found that he, too, had disappeared inside.

As if sensing her thoughts, Quarter said, "I'll stay up a little longer."

"Can't sleep?"

"I'm still on British time, I believe." He let his shoulders drop in resignation but grinned good-naturedly. "Any requests?"

She found herself smiling back. "Surprise me."

He started another Chopin, commenting to her, "I love this piece. I learned it when I was seven."

Her eyebrows disappeared under her bangs. "You're a prodigy?"

Quatre suppressed a chuckle. "Hardly. Just an avid learner."

"You seem like a prodigy." Quatre shrugged but smiled mysteriously as if silently confirming her statement.

She let the music infuse her veins and lungs a little before speaking again. "Do you know those four all very well?"

Quatre didn't even blink. "Yes, we all attended the same conservatoire as children and our families are connected."

"Oh." Usagi sighed and sat down on the sand beside him. "I don't understand any of them. I wish I'd never met them."

"I hope you wouldn't say the same for me." She caught him looking at her with barely suppressed amusement.

"Of course not! You're very charming."

He turned back to the keys. "My mother says I have happy manners. I think she's stuck too much in the Victorian era and doesn't know me well enough."

Usagi fought back a more blatant look of disbelief. "Really? I would have to agree with her."

Quatre looked up again from his hands and smiled. There was something wintry about that smile that made her heart quiver a little in fear. "You don't know me at all, Miss Usagi."

"But first impressions are vital," she argued, despite the small but blooming misgivings of her heart.

"Not always." The blonde laughed darkly. "Certainly don't judge by your first impressions of the four in the house. You might not guess it, but of them all, Hiiro might be the most naïve and unaffected."

Usagi almost snorted. "That's hard to believe."

"Yes, well, Hiiro is very blunt. He doesn't lie. He's manipulative and intelligent, yes, but forthright to a fault. He's not good at keeping secrets, you see, and not good at accommodating others." Quatre paused to consider the compliments he just paid to Hiiro. "Isn't honesty a nice virtue? Hiiro has it. Perhaps it's the most important virtue of all."

Usagi frowned. "I'm not sure I can agree. Just the other day Hiiro was-"

"Please, I'm not very interested in other people's lives," Quatre interrupted her smoothly, flashing a charming smile as he continued playing. The words desiccated in her throat as Usagi blinked at him. "You need to watch your step. I can say with certainty that I don't have happy manners. But aren't we all contradictions? You ask anything of me and I'd be willing to exert my fullest efforts. Does that make me an angel?"

Usagi frowned to herself as she lied back onto the sand. If what Quatre said was correct, was she in fact surrounded by blonde demons acting as angels and dark-haired angels who loved her the way only demons can?

As Usagi drifted off to sleep, her half-lucid dreams were plagued by angels and demons though it was very difficult to tell who was which. All that stood out in the blur was a pair of eyes, one a deep oceanic blue and the other a liquid blue-violet, and both seemed to be saying to her – _please, stay with me forever; be next to me every morning when I wake._

...

_Sigh, a tiring chapter. This took upwards of six hours, not all in one sitting, of course. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did; I really did come off as quite sappy in this chapter if I do so say so myself. : And I wasn't planning on introducing Quatre into the mix until later, but here's a brief preview. Unfortunately, as he said himself, he has a family reunion to get to and will depart his host tomorrow…only to return later. : As always, thank you for reading. Yours, Ange-._

Notes:

Isabel Archer – the protagonist from Henry James' The Portrait of a Lady

Eton – a very famous school in England that bred as 18 British Prime Ministers … like a prep school, where Quatre and the others met and spent some of their earlier teenage years.


End file.
